Archive for 'Baby 3'
August 21st, 2010 by Jen Hen under Baby, Baby 3. 1 Comment.
Obviously with Baby M on the way, DH and I have been browsing through websites and baby items. When I was pregnant with the other two kiddos I didn’t use resources like the internet to find much stuff (actually, I didn’t do baby registries or anything with them really). DH Cam and I have been finding some really interesting things. Some of it has made us raise an eyebrow while others have left us laughing so hard my stomach starts hurting and tears come to my eyes.
My sister and I came across the following item when I was pregnant with Lil’ C. We didn’t end up purchasing any then, but I have a feeling they are going to show up for Baby M.
Have you ever changed a baby boy? If so, then you know how it goes. I still remember the first time Lil’ C “sprinkled” during a diaper change. It shot UP and over his head, beyond the couch (where I was changing him), and some went directly into his face. He shuddered in shock and I couldn’t help but crack up.
DH: “Extreme recycling. ‘Nope baby. You can’t have the real deal right now. Here, take some recycled product I have left over. We’re not wasting a drop.’”
Don’t get me wrong, I understand storing breast milk for use later. Say, when you’re out somewhere with no privacy, or in case you have a babysitter for a rare moment out, or even a super helpful significant other who offers to cover a feeding in the middle of the night for you. I just don’t think I’d be real keen on walking around with the milk catcher in my bra. Then again, it could really cut down on either the disposable nursing pads, or laundry for washable pads. Hmm.
Hooter Hiders Nursing Cover
I’m suddenly thinking of Shakespeare (specifically… Romeo and Juliet): “What’s in a Name?”
Yes I was super immature and started laughing when I saw the name of this product. “Hooter Hiders.” *shaking my head* I’ve seen “Nursing Covers” amongst other names. You know, names with some “tact.”
Okay, so it was entertainment for a sleep-deprived Momma Hen the other day.
DH Cam’s take on this: “I can see it now. I’ll take Baby M into the bathroom to change him. I’ll block the view of him laying on the table, pull out a staple gun and a diaper. Then I’ll take the staple gun and hit it against the changing table but the people around will think I used it to close the diaper.” Me: “And the way babies scream bloody murder during diaper changes anyway….” Uncontrollable laughter ensues. DH: “I want to put bungee cords in there too. So I can attach them to the diaper and make the bungee cords suspenders.”
Tags:Amazon.com, baby gear, baby items, Daddy's Little Project Diaper Bag, Hooter Hiders Nursing Cover, humor, Milkies Milk-Saver, nursing products, Peepee Teepee.
August 3rd, 2010 by Jen Hen under Baby, Baby 3, Crafty, NaBloPoMo. 3 Comments.
I’ve been thinking green a lot lately, and not just because it’s the August theme for http://www.NaBloPoMo.com It’s all about the green baby decor. We’ve pretty much swayed over to jungle related items for Baby M. DH is even so awesome that he has been helping me cross stitch an adorable blanket covered in jungle animals.
Baby Micah's cross stitch blanket
We bought the kit at Hobby Lobby, but I couldn’t find it on their website, so here’s a different website that does have it listed.
So far we’ve completed the giraffe, the leopard, and the bird next to the giraffe. Yeah, we have a long way to go even with both of us working on it at times. But we’re making progress. Hey, we have 19 weeks to finish it. 
July 1st, 2010 by Jen Hen under Baby 3, Thursday Thirteen. No Comments.
I realize it has been several weeks since I did a Thursday Thirteen. In fact, I’m not sure that I’ve even done one since we found out that we are expecting Baby #3. This Thursday Thirteen is going to be about…. wait for it… yeah, pregnancy. It’s a Rants and Raves kind of day, so here we go…
- Rave: no…. Rant: no… 50/50 haha. Gas. Bloating. Yeah. The existence of gas and bloating is a major Rant. Some of my favorite foods can send my stomach into a frenzy and make me swell like a Macy’s parade balloon float. The attached Rave? I have a darn good excuse for those occasions when I’m just a tad less than lady like with my timing. The boys think it’s absolutely hilarious when I “step on a barking spider”.
- Rant: Mood swings. Contrary to what my husband may or may not think, *wink* I do not like getting snippy for no apparent reason. That poor man has gotten his head bitten off more than once or twice when I normally wouldn’t have said a word.
- Rant: Uncontrollable crying. It is RIDICULOUS! This insurance commercial comes on the other day. The kids and the mom are joking about all those annoying things “dad” does that they won’t have to deal with while he’s gone on his business trip. Then a screen comes up with “But what if he didn’t come home?” I looked at DH Cam, at the t.v., back at DH and I had to hide my face as I broke out into tears. It wasn’t the first time I’d seen the commercial but that particular day I was just a leaky faucet waiting to happen.
- Rave: Having a darn good excuse for requiring a milkshake every couple of days (or every day… depending on the week). “But… baby really wants a milkshake!”
- Rant: An absolutely horrific gag reflex. Seriously, can it stop?? It requires absolutely nothing to trigger. It comes out of nowhere. As soon as I wake up, I gag. Eating food? Gag. Smell something (pleasant or not). You guessed it… gag.
- Rave: Lil’ C had been doing darn good with his potty training since I’ve been pregnant! We’ve made huge advancements. I think seeing mommy get sick (literally) while trying to clean up his #2 from his undies convinced him using the toilet was a better idea.
- Rant: Lack of energy. I could probably take three naps a day and still sleep 8 hours at night. Actually, I have taken two in a day and still slept 8 hours so I doubt three would be pushing it. I’m in my 2nd trimester now so this is supposed to get better… soon.
- Rant: Dry, itchy skin. I don’t recall this being a problem with either of the boys until the final two months. My legs itch almost constantly. I have to use lotion a couple of times a day on them to find relief. Yes, I’m drinking lots of water. I keep ice water in my cup and keep the cup next to my chair.
- Rave: I really like picking out baby names. I don’t think I’ve slipped and mentioned names on here yet, and I’m trying to hold off a bit longer, but I will tell you we have a girls first and middle name picked out. We only have the first name picked for a boy at this point.
- Rave: Ultrasounds. I think they are just the neatest things! I love getting a peak inside and seeing how much the baby has changed since the previous viewing. Our first ultrasound the baby was 6 weeks on the dot and looked like little more than a beehive hanging around. Our second ultrasound the baby was just shy of 13 weeks and we could make out the head, back, arms, and legs. So cool. This coming Tuesday (July 6th), we are going to get to look at that little bundle again at 16 weeks… in 3D! It will be the first time I’ve ever seen one of my kids in 3D via ultrasound and I’m excited… nevermind the fact that we’ll be finding out if it’s a boy or a girl! WOOT!
- Rave: Family excitement for the bundle of joy on the way! It’s infectious!
We’re so blessed, and the kids are all so blessed, to have supportive family that is as excited as we are for this new little addition. We’ll be getting a DVD of our ultrasound Tuesday and I’m sure it’s going to get played more than a time or two. haha.
- Rant: Middle of the night trips to the bathroom. Increased fluid intake plus increased fluid production equals at least two wake ups to dash to the bathroom. Good thing I sleep on the side of the bed right next to our bathroom door.
- Rave: My fantastic husband who is super supportive, goes to the doctor appointments with me, helps me out around the house, picks up food cravings for me, and takes care of me when I’m moody/sickly/tired. But especially, because he is so sweet and always trying to find the baby in my belly. I think it’s adorable. I love him!
Tags:2nd trimester, pregnancy, pregnancy week 15, Thursday Thirteen.
June 28th, 2010 by Jen Hen under Baby 3. No Comments.
It’s the first day of summer and the weather is proving it with sweltering heat and a heat index well above my tolerance level.
Welcome to week 14 of my pregnancy! I’m already waddling like a penguin instead of a mother hen. The past several weeks have brought a lot of changes physically, mentally, and emotionally. I’ve ridden quite the rollercoaster from the moody/irritable/snap everyone’s head off to the cry-at-the-drop-of-a-hat. I keep pinching a nerve in my back that leaves me wanting to do nothing more than lay in bed. And the last three days has been an on-again, off-again headache. I gained 5 lbs then I lost 4 lbs. I went from wanting to sleep all day, to hardly sleeping at all, back to sleeping fairly normal, but wanting a nap mid-afternoon. One day I don’t want to see or talk to anyone, and the next I want to be surrounded by people.
Yes, I’m pregnant. lol. DH and I got to see our little bean on an ultra sound last week. It was an unplanned ultra sound, but when the doctor couldn’t find the baby’s heartbeat on the portable doppler he wanted to get a picture to make sure all was fine. I’m no skinny-mini, but I am fairly well built so he was just a little surprised when he couldn’t find the heartbeat. All was well on the ultrasound and we found that my placenta is in the anterior position, meaning that the chunkiest part of it is at the front of my uterus and was acting as a cushion preventing us from hearing baby. It also means it’s a bit harder for me to feel the baby move around. By this time with both X-man and Lil’ C I was able to feel a movement or two a day, but I’m lucky if I can feel Baby 3 a time or two during a week. At least I know that all is well in there and I am thankful for that.
Edit: Obviously I posted this a few days after I wrote it. What can I say? I’ve been easily distracted and haven’t stayed on task with many things for very extended periods of time. haha.
May 22nd, 2010 by Jen Hen under Baby 3. No Comments.
I’ve been so negligent! I’ve considered writing on numerous occasions but it just feels… overwhelming at times. No big shocker there. Making food feels overwhelming most days. ha.
Alright, so week 10 is upon me and the little bun in my Hen oven. I had a check up Friday and all is well. Despite the fact that I feel like my stomach is protruding and I’ve not been making completely healthy food choices, I’ve only gained 2 pounds. Sweet! And, summer is upon us, the end of my 1st trimester is getting super close, so my activity level will escalate. I might even manage to shed a few fatty pounds and trade them out for muscle tone. Who am I kidding? ha.
I’ve been staying home for two weeks and I absolutely love it so far. It doesn’t hurt that I have a super fantastical husband who grumbles not a single negative word to me when I’m being a lazy bum. Fortunately in the last week or so I’ve found a bit more energy and managed to catch up on all those things I had been neglecting. Except mopping. I can’t seem to bring myself to deal with the smell of pinesol. Eh. We don’t eat our food off the floor anyway, right?
I’ve really enjoyed my days at home with Lil’ C. He has been so super sweet and I really believe he’s happy being at home with Momma. My only complaint is that as soon as X-man gets home from school they seem to be at each others throat. In the last week we might have managed one whole evening without bickering and whining. *sigh* It’s a sibling thing. I remember what my childhood interactions were with my siblings. We fussed about things at each other all the time, and it wasn’t until we all were getting older that we forged much happier interactions. I bet it was all that fussing we got out of our systems growing up. haha.
DH started his new job this past Monday. They’ve really had him all over the board with his hours to work and I’m having to adjust just in a different way than him. I didn’t realize until his first overnight shift just how much of a “security blanket” he is to me. I couldn’t get to sleep until late the first night and I practically got no sleep last night. The kids are out of town for family events this weekend so at least it didn’t hurt that I went back to sleep for a nap and didn’t get up until after 12noon. Hubs is off work tonight and he couldn’t seem to stay asleep this morning, so we’ve gotten to spend most of the day chatting it up and dinking around the county.
I see a new drive in his eyes with his new job. He is enjoying the fact that when he leaves work, work doesn’t follow him home, and he’s finding that he has a true purpose in the environment of the facility. He can see the potential for growth within in the company and already has goals forming for himself over the coming years. Nevermind the security of the benefits and his salary.
We went to dinner out in the small town I grew up in tonight and as we sat there we were able to enjoy discussing the changes ahead of us this year. We just feel so blessed and are so excited for all of the positive things falling into place. Not to mention our new bundle of joy on the way.
Well, hubs is playing a game, but I’m gonna see if I can’t distract him so I can play one of my games or we can play a game together. I hope everyone has had a good week, and has a great weekend!
Tags:baby, general, life events, pregnancy.
May 9th, 2010 by Jen Hen under Baby 3. No Comments.
Today was the first day of week 8 in our pregnancy. We got to see our little beehive yesterday in our first ultra sound and heard the heartbeat running at 124 beats per minute. I don’t guess I’ve ever had an ultra sound this early in pregnancy so it was neat for me to see the yolk sac next to the baby. Of course, technology seems to have made some advances even in the four seemingly short years since I was pregnant with Lil’ C, never mind the 11 years since I was pregnant with X-man.
I think it is definitely safe to say that it all became very real to my DH when he saw the screen and saw this little heart beating inside of me. The look on his face was priceless and indescribable. I dare to say I almost saw a tear escape his eyes, and for anyone that knows my husband, you know that’s a big deal.
We have been taking it easy this weekend, as we planned earlier in the week. The kids are gone to visit with their father’s and paternal families for the weekend so we made plans to do a few things we’ve been meaning to do and overall just relax. And relax we have. After the ultra sound we hit the grocery store which was something I had been putting off for a week. We cleaned out the fridge and caught up on dishes. A friend came by to visit for a little while in the early afternoon, then I took a much needed three hour nap. It felt fantastic to hide in the cold of our bedroom and quiet of the house with no worry of needing to wake up to tend to responsibility. We went out to eat at Applebee’s for the first time in forever and enjoyed the 2 for $20 deal which includes two entrees and an appetizer. I was in the serious mood for a steak smothered in A1. The A1 seemed so spicy that I was sweating, but I couldn’t stay away from it. DH said it was definitely his kid craving the spicy. haha. I typically don’t care for spicy at all. We were going to go to a concert, but after stuffing ourselves we decided to just come back home for the night.
I told hubs I just feel so tired these days and I’ll be glad when I have my energy back. He was a cute smarty pants and said “Gee Jen. What reason do you have for being tired? It’s not like you’re making a whole new human being inside you or anything.” It’s comments like that which make me all the more thankful for having him. He is sincerely understanding of the effect pregnancy is having on me, and I couldn’t possibly take for granted the support he shows me.
After being lazy, and nursing our congestion and sinus issues, we decided to play cards until bedtime.
I woke up about my usual time this morning and fiddled around on my Facebook applications, then crawled back into bed with hubby just about the time he was ready to get up. I fell back to sleep until after 11am. Again, boy did that feel nice. The Wheel Mobile was holding auditions about an hour away from us and I had been contemplating going, but decided that today was just not a day for crowds and standing in lines. Instead we took our time doing a few things around the house, ate lunch, then decided we wanted to go out to the farm where we will be putting our new home (hopefully by this Fall). We gathered some stuff in the cooler, a few odds and ends, made a couple of stops in town, then drove out to enjoy the cool and brisk afternoon. I took hubs on a “tour” of the farm, in other words, we went for a walk through the fields and out into the woods. We got to share some really great quality time together and stories from our childhoods that we still didn’t know. It’s so nice that even after 3 lovely years we are still learning new things about each other.
We went back up to the acre where our house will be and gathered limbs that were still laying around from the ice storm damage over a year ago. My father came down and visited with us, then my sister walked down and visited. We built a fire, roasted hot dogs and made smores. After five hours I decided I needed home, a hot bath, and warm pajamas.
I guess I agitated some muscles in my back, but I was able to enjoy the first hot bath I’ve taken the time for in literally MONTHS, then DH was a sweetie and got the heating pad out for me. I laid in bed with the heating pad on high and fell asleep. I woke up a few hours later and my back was still hurting, but it has finally subsided.
I’m still battling congestion in my lungs from a round of bronchitis that hit me last Friday. I may go back to the doctor this week if I don’t have some improvement over the next few days. I really despise having to take medication, but I’m pretty well tired of coughing. I’m either getting a really good work out for my abs, or weakening my bladder control. haha. Aside from the aches, and the icky germs, I feel happy and I’m enjoying life.
This week will be my first full week as a stay at home mom and I’m feeling ambitious for the things I hope to accomplish with Lil’ C, cooking meals, and working on the house. I’m also fully planning on taking naps with Lil’ C every single day. haha. YAY for nap time.
As for now… yay for bedtime.
Tags:Applebees, campfire, farm land, hiking, pregnancy, pregnancy week 8, SAHM, smores, ultra sound.
April 21st, 2010 by Jen Hen under Baby 3. 1 Comment.
Do you see that?! We are SO excited (and DH is glad to know there really was some reason for all my moodiness lately)!
Monday I decided to stop and get a box of pee sticks on a whim, even though technically I wasn’t late yet. I came home and took a stick out. Before I could pull my pants up there was a BOLD line. The positive line was darker than the control! I started crying and jumping up and down. I called DH who was working and told him, then I called our OB/GYN’s office. They had an appointment super soon that afternoon and snagged it. I could hardly wait to hear doc tell me!
I bounced my way into the office, happily peed in the plastic cup, and a short while later my nurse came in with the due date chart! I wanted to start crying. She was excited with me (they’ve kind of gotten use to seeing me in there the last 13 months… I was just there 5 weeks ago). The doctor came in and was flushed and grinning ear to ear. He showed me the paper and said “I just wanted you to be able to see it too.”
Doc did all the standard procedures and sent me to get blood draws. He called me at 7pm Monday night to let me know that my hCG levels were at 775 and that he wanted me to come back in today just to get another blood draw to make sure that my levels were still climbing.
He called me around 5pm tonight and let me know that my levels have gone up great and are already at 1889. We’ll be having our first ultra sound the week of May 3rd (gotta call and schedule that tomorrow).
Estimated due date is CHRISTMAS EVE! Notwithstanding the due date changing after the ultra sound, this will make my THIRD Christmas week baby! X-man’s birthday is Dec. 27th, and Lil’ C’s birthday is Dec. 20th!
X-man started bouncing up and down then leaned over and put his head on my belly when I asked him what he would think if I told him that he was going to have a brother or sister.
I sat down in the floor with Lil’ C and told him to come over to me. I said, “There’s a baby in mommy’s belly.” Lil’ C: “I wanna see.” He lifted my shirt to see my belly and poked it. “AHH! It bit me!” I laughed. He’s already practicing blaming his baby sibling for things it didn’t do. haha.
When I asked the kids what they want, brother or sister, Lil’ C said “Um. Brudder.” X-man said, “a brother. No. Sister. Yeah, a sister.” I’m voting for all things pink and pretty and frilly. DH is voting for a son. The house is officially split 50/50. haha.
Tags:hCG, pregnancy, siblings and pregnancy.
