Preggers Post - Week 18

It's official.... we're having a boy! 

Yesterday Mr. Smith and I went for our Anatomy Ultrasound, thinking we had a little girl in there.  When the ultrasound technician (sweetheart, by the way, because she totally put up with our off-the-wall questions), asked what we thought it was, we both said, "Girl.  Everyone's telling us it's a girl."  To which she said, "Well everyone's wrong.  It's a boy!" 

I seriously thought Mr. Smith was going to kiss her.  I haven't seen him that happy in Lord knows how long. 

We are very, VERY, excited at Little Boy Smith cookin' away in there.  The ultrasound showed that everything looked normal - Little Man was in there, kickin' away and swimming around (special thanks to my lunchtime Mountain Dew), with not a care in the world. 

Which leads me to my next development - Anterior Placenta.  Apparently I haven't felt Little Man doing his jive in there because I have one of these.  Which Mr. Smith immediately Googled upon leaving.  Here's what WhattoExpect.com says:

It means your baby is taking a backseat to the placenta. The term "anterior placenta" refers to the location of the placenta within your uterus. Most of the time, a fertilized egg will situate itself in the posterior uterus — the part closest to your spine, which is where the placenta eventually develops, too. Sometimes, though, the egg implants on the opposite side of the uterus, closest to your abdomen. When the placenta develops, it grows on the front (or anterior) side of your uterus, with the baby behind it.

Does the location of your placenta make any difference? Not to your baby, who doesn't care which side of the uterus he or she is lying on, and it certainly makes no difference to him or her where the placenta lies. And what about to you — or your practitioner? You might be less able to feel your baby's early kicks and punches because the placenta will serve as a cushion between your baby and your tummy..... These situations will resolve if the placenta moves into a more posterior position later on (as anterior placentas commonly do). But the good news here is that, despite those slight inconveniencies, an anterior placenta in and of itself poses no risk to your health.

I read that last line several times.  Worst case scenario:  C-section.  I'm cool with whatever.  Just get Little Man out safely.

 

Which leads me to our appointment with our super-cool ob, Dr. Hoover.  She answered a couple of my questions - thankfully - that had been plaguing me since our last visit, when I saw about 4 med students get on the elevator with us.  This is how it went down:

 

"Um, Dr. Hoover, on D-Day, will there be, like,  12-year-old med students in the room with me, at the most anguishing/embarrassing moment at my life, pointing and staring?  Because I know UAB is a learning facility, and I, um, just wanted a heads up if so."  (Mr. Smith is dying right now, by the way, in his chair.)

 

"Mrs. Smith, absolutely not." 

 

Sweet.

 

"Mrs. Smith, have you thought about a birth plan yet?"

 

"Yes.  My plan is not to be a martyr.  I don't want to be a hero, here, Dr. Hoover.  You just shoot me up with whatever pain medicine you have and get him out safely." 

 

"Perfect!  You're the perfect, most wonderful pregnant lady patient ever!" (This line may have not happened quite like that....)

 

 

Later last night, we held a little Gender Revelation Party at our home, with our family. 

 

Before the Great Unveiling, we had everyone vote on what they thought Baby Smith was. 

 

 Team Boy:  Mitchell, Grandma Nancy, Dad

Team Girl: Whit, Melanie, Mom, Sister, MiL, FiL 

Proud Parents-to-Be

(Yes, that's a double chin.  Apparently all my weight gain has gone to my face.  Whatev.  I'm trying to rock it.)

It's a BOY!!! 

To Do Now:

Take back all my girl stuff. 

Stock up on boy stuff! 

Order my boy crib bedding.

Select a name (Mr. Smith is very picky!)

Easy Holiday Dishes

With holiday parties looming in the near future, I love to make these quick and easy crowd pleasers!

Sausage Balls

You'll Need:

Hot Sausage

Bisquick

Sharp Cheddar Cheese

Put uncooked sausage, whole package of cheddar, and about 2 cups of Bisquick in a bowl.  Mix together - I say use your hands.  It's much easier. 

Form batter into balls and place on greased cookie sheet.

Bake at 350 degrees 15-20 minutes, until sausage is browned.

Rotel Dip

Grab your crock pot!  This recipe makes an entire crock pot full. 

You'll Need:

Sausage (1-2 packs)

2 large packages of Velveeta

4 cans Rotel

Brown and drain sausage.

While your sausage is cooking, cut Velveeta into cubes and place in crock pot.

Drain Rotel and place in crock pot. 

Mix in cooked sausage. 

Should be ready in about 30 minutes on High setting.  Keep on Low or Warm for remainder of party.  Serve with Chips! 

My Thanksgiving Pants... I mean Maternity Pants!

An Ode to Maternity "Thanksgiving" Pants...

Preggers Post: Week 17

Baby Smith

Grows to the size of a turnip this week.  Well, that's not very cute is it?  I've read it is the size of your open hand, but I have small hands, so who knows.  Baby Smith also starts accumulating body fat this week, which should be very easy given that it's Thanksgiving week and I've been stuffing my face.  It's a good time to be pregnant.  (And a good time to be wearing maternity clothes.)

Baby Smith also can hear everything now - in fact, loud noises may startle him/her. 

So... shhhh..... no need to yell at the tummy.

Momma Smith

Is ready to find out if it's a boy or girl!!!  I can't wait.  Less than one week to go. 

According to one Chinese Calendar, it's a girl.  According to another one, it's a boy. 

Then, that gender test where you hold a charm over your stomach and see which way it moves?  Girl.  Three times in a row.  I think most of our family and friends are split 50/50 on what it is! 

Still having the morning toothbrushing issues.  Still not making it through an entire night's sleep with the bathroom trips.  Also, sleeping is starting to be a tad uncomfortable.  Just like I can't get settled comfortably, ya know?  Oh, you don't.  Right.  Fingers crossed Santa brings me one of those super cool pregnancy pillows for Christmas! 

In Other News

I ordered our Nursery Furniture yesterday!  I just could not, COULD NOT, bring myself to order that expensive set we picked out a couple of weekends ago.  My frugal fierceness just would not let me pull the trigger.  I searched and searched and searched. 

Know what I found?  That JC Penney's is having a Baby Sale right now, which includes their nursery furniture.  With $500 off, free shipping to the store, and cash back through ebates.... how could a girl refuse such an offer?  I came in well under my first estimated budgeted amount.  (Insert blissful sigh here.)

I also wandered into Babies 'R Us last Friday on my lunch break to pick up some things for Momma Pilsch's baby shower.  Um - hello Carter's Clearance!  I thought it was the smart thing to do to pick up several items in both the boy and girl sections.  I mean, I can always take it back, right?  They were 40-70% off, people.  Work with me.

I tried to get a range in sizes, from Newborn up to 6 months.  Wish you could have seen me calculating the weather 3-6 months from May in the aisle!  I'm sure the people there thought I was loopy.  What?  You do too.  Well, I might be. 

Boy Stuff

Abby was super excited about the boy stuff.  She thinks Baby Smith is a boy. 

Please ignore the demonic look in her eye.  I swear she loves us.

Girl Stuff

Cooper thinks it's a Girl. 

Or he was just confused why I wasn't taking pictures of him for once. 

Whew...

.... what a weekend! After a chilled out Friday night with some pizza and TV, we hit the ground running Saturday morning. I headed to Tuscaloosa bright and early for Mrs. Pilsch's baby shower for Baby Girl Pilsch, and got to spend some funny and enlightening moments with these ladies.  (Mental Note:  learn what several of those items were that were opened.)  Mr. Smith spent the day getting a haircut and sighting his gun.  Did I spell that correctly?  He going hunting this week, so he eagerly spent the day preparing for this adventure. 

Momma Pilsch looks fantastic (blonde in the middle of the picture)... did I mention she has twin boys who are about 17 months old?  I got a chance to visit for a while after the shower at her home, and I was more than a bit exhausted watching those two kiddo's run around.

Later that evening in Birmingham...

Mr. Smith and I attended Miss Cecelia Brown's, now Mrs. CeCe Freeman, wedding reception at the Vestavia Country Club.  We missed the ceremony - no judging!  We were running late!  But we got there in time for some great food and fun times with the Bride and Groom and sorority sisters, such as Mrs. Searson, who is still bronzed and beautiful from her recent honeymoon.

We heart the Searson's!  Just ignore the fact that we look like ghosts compared to Malibu Barbie and Ken here. 

Sorority Sister time!  The bride looked gorgeous!!! 

Sunday was spent in Cullman with my family.  We took Cooper with us and he had a ball running around and playing on the Farm.  He got to meet horses for the first time, and there was even some swimming in the pond (which later led to a bath once we returned home).  We got the chance to spend time with not only my parents, but brother and his charming girlfriend at their church's annual Thanksgiving dinner and worship.  Let's just say the maternity wear is working out quite nicely these days with all the eating!  I'm loving it!



Wordless Wednesday: It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year... when these are back on the shelves!

Preggers Post: Week 16

Good morning everyone!  Hope wherever you are you are staying nice and dry!  It's been raining here for a couple of days now, and it starts to play with your mood after a while.  :)

We're on Week 16 people!  What's so funny is that before you enter into this whole Pregnancy World, when you ask someone who is expecting how far along they are and they tell you their "Week", I'd give a blank stare.  Now that we're fully inundated with it, I get it.  Every week something really cool happens with Baby's development.  But, for everyone else's sake, I'm 4 months now.  (Insert excited squeal here.)

Baby Smith

This week, Baby Smith grows to the size of an avocado.  Also, the ear bones are in place this week, meaning Baby Smith can hear me talk, sing in the car, sing in the shower, sing while cooking, etc. Which leads me to stronger facial expressions by Baby Smith this week, that are probably along the lines of grimacing at the sound of my singing voice.  :)

Also, Baby Smith's backbone is stronger, letting him/her work on straightening its head.  Eyebrows and eyelashes are also in place this week.  

Momma Smith

Have had some serious food cravings over the past week.  Ranging from Sister's Buffalo Chicken Dip (which I made last night), to Mexican food, to Krystal's hamburgers.  Who knew? 

Still missing a full night's sleep, as I am still visiting the bathroom twice a night.  Also am getting pretty sick (literally and figuratively) of getting sick with the morning teeth brushing.  Gross. 

Started this last night, as a precaution.  I'll give a full review, say May 2011. 

Thinking I'm on the last week of fitting into current work pants; however, cannot wear maternity pants.  Suggestions? 

In Other News

Mr. Smith and I went nursery furniture shopping on Saturday and picked out a set we really liked!  The set I had originally picked out had already been sold, but Mr. Smith managed to find another one at the Showroom.  Only double what I had originally budgeted.  Did I mention he has expensive taste?  Only the best for Baby Smith, per Daddy Smith. 

I've also picked out my crib bedding, one for a girl and one for a boy.  I may or may not have already ordered the girl crib bedding, as it was on Sale with the Target Baby Sale.  It's the only one I've liked, okay people?  If Baby Smith is a boy, I'll just take it back. 

Speaking of Gender Revelation... we find out in less than 2 weeks!  Are you as excited as I am? 

We visited another "early learning center" last week.  Our goal is to still have one selected by year's end, so fingers crossed. 

(Note: if you are in college and wanting to make lots of money with your future career path, open an "early learning center," call it something prestigious, and watch the moola roll in.) 

Life is Precious.

Pardon this post while I get something off my mind....  in the past few weeks I've had two people I know die unexpectedly in car accidents.  Although they didn't know each other, they both shared a commonality - both were taken much too quickly from us.  And while I hadn't spoken to either in a while, both's accidents stopped me in my tracks to say, "Why?" 

I know death is hard for anyone, at any age.  It tears someone away from us, no matter if we're ready or not.  And while we can take comfort knowing where that person's soul is and that we'll see them again one day, it is still the void of silence that we must deal with until then that makes the journey to reunification so much harder. 

It just always seems particularly harder when it is someone so young, so full of life, and who you just knew was going to make such a positive difference in this world.

Life.  Is.  Precious.

And as we sometimes get consumed in the day-to-day "To Do" lists, the seemingly never-ending chores around the house, or disgruntled by the little unexpected things like purchasing new dishwashers (ahem, I'm talking to myself here, more than anyone else), it is important to take a pause, give thanks, and realize just how blessed we are.  Because life is precious, and you never know when someone you cherish will be ripped from your comfort zone of life. 

As we enter into this season of Thanksgiving, I'm challenging myself to not only "give thanks" but to truly take the time to be thankful.  I heard someone say not to long ago that she silences the radio on the way to work, and just meditates and prays on the many blessings in her life.  Today was Day 1 of this little task for me, and it was amazing how many things came flooding in as I just drove in silence. 

Life.  Is.  Precious. 

Italian Ravioli Stew

Mr. Smith and I tried this Italian Ravioli Stew last weekend from Pillsbury.

You'll Need:

4 medium carrots, sliced (approx. 2 cups)

1 large onion, chopped

2 cans diced tomatoes with Italian-style herbs, undrained

2 cans chicken broth

1 can cannellini beans, drained

2 teaspoons dried basil leaves

1 package (9 oz) refrigerated Italian sausage or cheese-filled ravioli (We used the cheese-filled.)

Hopefully you'll have a helper like I did... 

Dump everything in your crock pot, except the ravioli noodles. 

It says cook on Low for about 6 hours, but I would give it another hour, as our veggies weren't quite tender after 6 hours. 

Increase heat setting to High.  Stir in Ravioli.  Cover and cook about 10 minutes or until Ravioli are tender. 



Guess what...

... Sister's joined the blogging world!  If you need some new reading material, head on over to Weekdays with the Whitfield's.

P.S.  Sister is really my Sister-in-Law, but we're close enough to be real sisters, hence the dropping of the "in-Law" portion of her title. 

P.P.S.  I think she's really cute and sassy, don't you?

Preggers Post: Week 15

Baby Smith

Baby Smith grows to the size of an apple this week. 

You'd think you could feel an apple moving around inside of you, but nope.  Nothing.  However, sometimes when I lay on my side, I do feel a pressure like something's slid down that way and pressing on that side's organs.  Not uncomfortable, just weird.

Baby Smith can also move all of his/her joints, can sense light, and is forming taste buds this week. 

Momma Smith

Sinuses = Major Inconvenience.  We're still trying to take the "No Medicine Route" but that Approved Medicine List is looking better and better.  Direct from BabyCenter.com: If your nose is stuffed up, for instance, you can probably chalk it up to the combined effect of hormonal changes and increased blood flow to your mucous membranes. This condition is so common, there's even a name for it: "rhinitis of pregnancy." Some pregnant women also suffer nosebleeds as a result of increased blood volume and blood vessel expansion in the nose.  Awesome.  I hope my co-workers won't mind if I sit here with two tissues stuffed up my nose.  I hear that's really professional.

By now I'm suppose to have gained 5 pounds.  This is a bold-faced lie, as I am 10 pounds heavier and can no longer fit into all but two of my work pants.  However, over the past couple of weeks I've hit a plateau with belly growth.  I hear this is normal, but once I hit the 20-week mark, all bets are off. 

This 20-week mark is supposedly a Big Deal.  Major belly growth, gender knowledge, and feeling the baby kick are all right around this time. 

I have now had my first "Hormonal Rage" experience of this pregnancy, and it happened at the Wal-Mart on Lakeshore last night.  Look, I get it.  It's Wal-Mart and you kind of "assume the risk" of shopping there, but I can also do our weekly grocery shopping for less than $100/week there, so it's a trade-off. 

Until last night.

When I snapped.

Two fella's that worked there were just standing in the aisle - one of the main ones, might I add - openly and inappropriately checking out the female customers.  And making inappropriate comments that were loud enough to overhear.  And I know this because I had to walk past them twice. 

And on the second time past, one fella was just hanging out in the middle of the aisle, where I had to say "Um, excuse me please" just to get by. 

Look, I just want to get in and get out with my checked off list of weekly grocery items.  Not have to hear Wal-Mart's version of the Roxbury Guys - a cruder version, that is. 

This citizen called the Store Manager.  It's not something I'm proud of.  I never do that kind of thing, but I was taking a stand.

A stand for all women who just want to get their weekly grocery shopping done and home to fix dinner on a Monday evening.

I kind of think the Store Manager got a kick out of my dramatic interpretation.  We were fast friends, and he promised to address the issue.  And I believe him, because that's what friends do. 

Don't judge me. 

Day Care Update

I now know the feeling of "Absolutely not." for a particular day care.  I won't name any names, but when you've got a feeling, girlfirend's got a feeling.  I think maybe my first day care visit just spoiled me!  We're hoping to have reserved and paid for "our spot" for next Summer by the end of this year. 

In Other News

Mr. Smith and I may have picked out our nursery furniture, and might be sauntering down this Saturday morning to check it out.  It's on Sale (Really?  Are you surprised by this with me?) and within my budget for nursery furniture, unless we get hit by something unexpectedly with its purchase.

Speaking of unexpectedly, our dishwasher started leaking last night. 

I mean, when it rains, it pours, doesn't it? 



Bragging Rights...

... please pardon me as I brag on my hubs, Mr. Smith, who went above and beyond this weekend to help his wife around the house.  Whilst I was busy attending a baby shower Saturday morning for a sweet friend from graduate school, I returned home to find clothes folded, air filter changed, litterbox emptied, bedrooms vacuumed, and kitchen cleaned.  Mr. Smith also cooked some corn dip for the football funeral viewing party we later attended at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Wise.

On Sunday, I was not feeling so hot.  At all.  Dang you sinus problems!  I laid up (or was I stove up?  That's for you, Suz!) all day - literally all day - in the bed with some self-prescribed bed rest.  At various points of the day I held a cold washcloth on my little nose, who was so sick of the sinus problems it decided to have some awesome nosebleeds.  During this time, Mr. Smith made a quick run to Home Depot, worked outside securing the fence for Coop Dawg, ordered us some dinner, and then helped me put clean sheets on the bed (since I had been a sloth on them all day and I just knew they were germy). 

Now, it's Monday and it's back to business as usual.  Grocery store run, weekly dinner menu to organize, and Christmas shopping (which I've already knocked out pretty much... once I get on a roll I can be done within 1-2 hours online - I'm a tag it, bag it, and bring it home kind of girl).

How was your weekend?  I have a new recipe to share - Italian Ravioli Stew - later on! 

It's a Taco Soup Kind of Night...

Last night we hosted Sister and her Hubs over for some delicious Taco Soup!  With the weather turning colder every day, soup sounds better and better, right? 

(Plus, it's so economical, which you know I love!)

I snatched this recipe from over on Kelly's Korner's Recipe Blog, which is fast becoming a favorite of mine.  I changed it around a little, but you get the idea:

What You Need

• 2 lb. lean ground beef
• 1 onion
• 3 cans diced tomatoes
• 1 can whole kernel corn (drained)
• 1 can black beans
• 1 can pinto beans
• (You can substitute the beans however you want; Kelly's Korner uses Ranch Style beans, but I couldn't find them)
• 1 package Taco seasoning mix
• 1 package Hidden Valley seasoning mix

What To Do

• Brown your meat and drain.
• Saute your onions a little in some butter or olive oil.  We used butter.
• Combine all ingredients in a big pot and get it hot enough to boil. 
• Our's looked a little hearty, so I added a couple of cans of water. 

• Enjoy!  We had our Taco Soup with Taco Blend Cheese and Frito's.  Yum!

Preggers Post - Week 14

What's shakin?  Thought I'd keep you updated on the World of Baby Smith, however uninteresting you may think it is.  :) 

Week 14

Baby Smith is the size of a Lemon and apparently can make facial expressions this week. 

Momma Smith: Hello Second Trimester!  Welcome back energy!  Still feeling pretty good, despite some horrible headaches.  Still gagging with morning teeth brushing though and getting up at least once a night to go to the bathroom... not so good.  Does this stop at some point?  Only get worse, you say?  Awesome.

In Other News...

Officially ordered some maternity clothes from the Clearance section of Old Navy.com and about wet my pants trying them on from laughing so hard.  I'm seriously in love with maternity jeans.  Everyone should have a pair, regardless if you're preggers or not.  Wore them out for the first time to Erin's pre-wedding getting ready session, just to give the ladies some laughs.  However, I know they're jealous of how cool they are. 

The Day Care search is on!  Visited my first "early learning center" last week, and am getting two more scheduled this week.  So intense. 

Have signed up or at least visited several great money-saving-for-baby websites, including BabySteals.com (thanks Mrs. Baker!), Publix Baby Club, Zulily, Pampers, Gerber, Planning Family.com, etc. 

We've scheduled our "Anatomy Ultrasound" aka the "What Gender Is It?" Ultrasound for Monday, November 29th.  Promise to let you know as quickly as possible; however, we want to plan something special to unveil the news to our parents and siblings. 

We're still discussing possible names, nursery furniture, bedding, etc.  But we've got a while right?  No?  Get on that as soon as possible because of Southern people's insane obsession with monogramming?  Right.  I'll add that to the "To Do List." 

I Now Pronounce You... Mr. and Mrs. Searson!

What a wonderful weekend spent celebrating Erin and Matt! 

I think it's best to explain via pictures, don't you?

Bridesmaid's Luncheon at The Club.

(It was a little windy...)

Rehearsal Dinner at Irondale Cafe.

(Um... YUM!  Where has this delicious place been hiding?)

The Bride and Groom

Such a happy, gracious, loving couple all weekend!

Bridesmaids with the Bride

Cute Favor Table



The Big Day

Don't ask.  Erin's pointing to Baby Smith, but what am I doing?  2 Legit 2 Quit maybe?  Who knows.  There's a certain level of insanity that takes over a wedding party minutes before the ceremony.  This is a prime example of such behavior.

Ok, now for real, a serious shot.

First Dance

P.S.  Don't they look like Barbie and Ken? 

P.P.S.  Don't you just love Erin's hair?

 

Phi Mu Sorority Sisters

Just for you... A Baby Smith bump shot.

End Note:

Special thanks to Miss Meredith Gilchrist, who traded her Size 4 bridesmaid dress with my Size 2.  We seriously couldn't get mine zipped up, and they were scared my Spanx were hurting the Little One, for real.  Miss Gilchrist stepped up to the plate and graciously swapped her dress for mine, which she looked fabulous in, by the way.  And, Baby Smith and I got to breathe for the Big Day.