It's been awhile...

School is back in full force and kicking my butt, so it's been awhile since I've posted. Whomever thought it was a great idea to put a teacher who won't be at school for almost 1/3 of the year in a new subject matter that is crucial for our state test scores.... Needless to say, I'm stressed. Any other year, I'd have loved the challenge and been up for it, but this year, I just feel completely overwhelmed. I just feel like I have this ticking time bomb that is my belly, and that this kid could come whenever, and that I won't have everything prepared and ready for my leave by the time she does. I don't know why I have this feeling she's coming early- I just do. Which worries me even more, because you know what they say about mother's intuition. I guess I don't mind if she comes a week or two early... but I'm terrified it will be even earlier. And the stress I'm under from my job isn't going to help that matter any!
Since work wasn't stressful enough... I got diagnosed with gestational diabetes this week. Joy. So, in the course of my insane day, I now have to find the time to eat two snacks at school, exercise at least 30 minutes (I've gotten a 15 minute walk in last night- I guess it's progress at least!) and just overall take better care of myself, because there is a direct link between stress and your body's ability to utilize insulin. I'm already having difficulty gaining weight, and getting yelled at by my dr for that. I just can't win!
Tell that to my boss. She had GD, and was "just fine" and I will be too... I love how she's my Dr and thinks she knows this. So, I've adopted a new mantra. I'm leaving work at 4pm. What's done, is done, what isn't, will get done later. I cannot continue staying there until 5 and 6 at night, and exhausting myself, even if that's what they're expecting of us this year. I physically, mentally and emotionally just cannot do it. And I hate to sound like the whiney pregnant lady who's using her pregnancy as an excuse- but you know what, if that's what I have to be, I will.
So, anyways, a few weeks worth of belly pics to wrap up my whine fest.




26ish weeks- I lost track of when I took this picture!

29 weeks- I really see no difference!

Nursery is officially FINISHED!

Phew! It was a lot of work, but it's done!

Sweet little birdies...

Are all over my house! Not real ones though- Lily's nursery, as though it has a mind of it's own, has suddenly taken on a bird theme, and I'm loving it! The bedding is almost finished- all I have left is the bumper, and it won't take long- I just have to get the motivation to get it finished. The fact that it's almost August and I want the nursery finished by then so I can start focusing on school should be motivation enough, one would think. I've made a few things for the walls (though the inspiration was found elsewhere- I saw cute prints on Etsy, but they weren't the colors I wanted for the room, and I figured I could make my own!) as well as purchased some things. Really, I'm at a point where I just need to finish hanging things, and I'll be done! Yay!

Last post, I promised a 21/22w belly picture, so I'll post that first, then post what I've got so far for the nursery- those pictures are more "pieces" that still need to be put together as a whole!

21/22 weeks

One of the little birdies I appliqued/embroidered for the dust ruffle

Crib Skirt

Wall art for above the crib- this is the final product inspired by a print I saw on Esty. Steve helped with the branches- apparently, I have a difficult time making branches look "real", but he did a great job, I think! My husband is so crafty... This is the same scrapbook paper I used on the wall letters below.

Wall Letters- just scrapbook paper modge podged onto pre-cut letters- these are going to go on a white floating shelf above the bookshelf/dresser, flanked by two smaller shelves that have a small clear polka dot vase with a daisy in it (again, thank you Ikea!)

A bigger view of the birdies that are on the center panel of the bumper

Our nursing/reading nook- the print above the chair I bought on Etsy. Too cute!

The corner opposite the glider, with a coordinating print also from Etsy, and my Ikea lampshade that started all this birdy nonsense!

It's a....

Little baby girl! Lilliann Ruth Zerkle is, so far, looking just perfect! I had an ultrasound last Thursday, where we found out the sex, and I have already spent an obscene amount of money on girly baby clothes- is it my fault that Kohls, Carter's and the Children's Place were all having great sales??? We have new pictures from the u/s, and as soon as I find time to get our printer hooked up downstairs in the new "office" (aka. the basement), I'll post them.

We've also gotten the nursery painted already- I'll get some pictures up soon. I texted a pic to my sisters after we got the first coat on, and their reactions? "Wow, that's bright," and "Pink." So this should give an idea of what we've got going on! Steve put up a chair rail, and I think it really sets the room off- my bright pink isn't quite as bold with a white border above and below it. I figure once the furniture is in, it won't be quite as noticeable anyways (though, don't get me wrong, it will still be bold!) since things will be in front of it. Now, all I have left to do is make the crib bedding, organize everything and determine what we still need, and finish decorating!

I also need to get an updated belly pic (do you see a trend here with me and pictures?!) But here's my (biweekly, it seems) update of how I'm doing!

How far along: 20w1d.
Total weight gain: I gained another whole pound! So I'm at 197 now. Yay me! All that ice cream is finally paying off.. lol
How much does baby weigh: Well, I have a cantaloupe this week, and at the u/s last week, the tech said she was 10 oz and 10 inches... not too shabby!
Maternity clothes: Yup, I'm in them.
Stretch marks: Getting tired of this question- just going to leave up this standard answer- had 'em for years. Am over it.
Sleep: Some nights, I sleep fine, others, not so much. My husband's snoring is about to kill me.
Best moment this week: Finding out that we're having a girl!
Movement: Feel movement pretty much every day now- some of those kicks are getting awfully forceful!
Food cravings: Still loving the carbs, ate pickles the first time the other night- they were pretty good, but not craveworthy...
Belly button in or out: Still an innie- never popped out with DS, so probably won't this time either!
What I miss: Getting an uninterrupted night's sleep. Good luck with that, I guess!
What I'm looking forward to: Getting the nursery finished and buying more baby stuff!
Milestone: 20w! I'm halfway there!!!

Just sittin', and hopin', and waitin', and lovin'...

In a week in a half, I can finally stop saying "he, she, it" in reference to the baby! The big u/s is scheduled for July 2 (again, right near a big day- this kid is going to have some flair, I tell you!) and I can't wait to find out what it is! I have an inkling (or maybe just a hope, who knows) that it is a girl, but obviously, we won't know a thing until next Thursday! Want to know why I think it might be a girl? At the 13w u/s, there was nothing "dangling" that the u/s tech could see. I took that silly Intelligender test, and even though I have PCOS and it said it would most likely read boy, it read girl! This pregnancy has been completely different from Aiden's- I've had much more morning sickness (still hasn't fully gone away, and I'm almost 1/2 through this pregnancy!), my face has broken out (and I hardly ever have breakouts, and had none with DS), and I've lost more weight this time and am not gaining it back very easily. I know that none of these things definitely mean it's a girl, but, one can hope and dream, right?



I even went so far as to buy this awesome lampshade I found at IKEA, which would make a perfect little girl's room (and I might have to figure out a way to make it work for a boy's room, if it's a boy- we'll see!) and have started searching for fabrics that I could use to create bedding and decor. I'm probably tempting fate to give me a boy by doing this, I am aware, but I couldn't help myself! If all else fails, I can always return it!



In other news, I got a phone call from my assistant principal at school today, telling me that I'm being switched from the high school to the middle school. I have mixed emotions about this. I'll be teaching 8th grade Language Arts (one regular ed class, one intervention). I enjoy LA, it being one of my favorite subjects myself in school, but am a bit overwhelmed knowing the amount of information I need to cover, and how it overlaps instead of being nice and sequential like the Social Studies curriculum is! I'm also not too excited about the knowledge that I'll be spending 2 bells in a row with my students- It's a lot of time to cover what we need to accomplish, but it also presents some interesting challenges in maintaining student interest and in classroom management. I was also looking forward to the fact that I had much of what I would need for my social studies classes already prepped, and now, I'll pretty much have to start from scratch- not exactly a fun task when you're tired and pregnant. Too, I'll have to do quite a bit of advanced prep and planning so that when I go on maternity leave, the sub will have enough material to cover that time. So much for a relaxing summer... I have this feeling you'll be seeing me pouring over curriculum maps and textbooks, trying to figure out what I'm going to be doing next fall! I'm also really going to miss my high school kids on my caseload- I've developed a close bond with them, and, with some of them, I'm slightly concerned about the teacher who is moving from middle school to my old post in the high school. I know one student in particular, who's had a great year with me, had a really rough time with her in the middle school, and she'll be both his case manager and his teacher. Poor kid. I'm going to try not to be one of those teachers who get all pissy about change- it happens, they obviously see me as a better fit in the middle school for some reason, and I'll take that as a compliment to my talents and abilities (though I think it's more the fact that they don't like the above mentioned teacher!). I just have to readjust my vision of what next year was going to be like, and suck it up and deal!



Well, here's my "update" and most recent belly picture- I'm finally starting to look pregnant instead of fat!

18 weeks!
How far along: Technically 17w6d, so 18 weeks.
Total weight gain: Am still at 196. Short of eating sticks of butter, I don't know what else I can do to start gaining weight. Oh well, if my Dr's aren't worried, I won't be either. We'll see what they say at my next appt if I still haven't gained anything.
How much does baby weigh: According to the Bump, I have a sweet potato growing in me. Aw, how cute!
Maternity clothes: Are heavenly!
Stretch marks: Getting tired of this question- just going to leave up this standard answer- had 'em for years.
Sleep: It's been hard to sleep the past few nights, partly because I got really sunburned this weekend. But sleeping in general is still not great. Guess my body's trying to get me ready for when this kid will be outside keeping me awake!
Best moment this week: Feeling a very subtle little kick on the outside while lying in bed last night- I was kind of pressing on my tummy, but I could feel a couple of kicks!
Movement: much more noticeable, but still not as often as I know it will be in a few weeks!
Food cravings: Spaghetti with butter and parmasean cheese. It wasn't nearly as yummy as it sounded once I actually made it and tried it.
Belly button in or out: Still an innie- never popped out with DS, so probably won't this time either!
What I miss: Getting an uninterrupted night's sleep. Good luck with that, I guess!
What I'm looking forward to: July 2nd! Can't wait to figure out what this little one is!
Milestone: No big ones as of yet!

Grow, belly (and baby), Grow!

So, in honor of the fact that I can now actually feel an actual baby bump in my tummy, I figured it's high time I did some belly pics. I'm not the littlest of girls, so I generally always look a little on the pregnant side, to be honest, but that's only if I'm not standing with good posture. I can no longer just suck in my pregnant gut, so I figure it is actually considered a bump now. So, here it is, my 15w belly!

How far along: 15w 3days


Total weight gain: Uh, so yeah, was at 198 last time... am back at 196. I'm eating, I'm doing all I can, but just don't seem to be gaining much weight yet. Oh well, still plenty of time!


How much does baby weigh: Dunno. Bump.com says it's an avocado this week. Mmmm, guacamole baby!


Maternity clothes: Bought some cute new ones last week- still don't look pregnant in them though!


Stretch marks: Getting tired of this question- just going to leave up this standard answer- had 'em for years.


Sleep: Still pretty tired, but not nearly as much as a few weeks ago. Just this week it's been getting uncomfortable to sleep on the belly- bought me a Snoogle, so I'm hoping that helps me sleep better!


Best moment this week: Noticing that I had an actual, true "bump" when lying down- baby has taken up residence just under my belly button!


Movement: Very, very subtle- subtle enough to make me think I'm just imagining it (but the doppler confirmed it, b/c I felt baby move same time as I heard it kick the doppler!)


Food cravings: Uhh... strawberries. Easy Cheese. Ice cream. And I saw the word pickles the other day, and just about opened the jar in the store, but by the time I got home, I didn't want a pickle anymore. Very random!


Belly button in or out: Still an innie- never popped out with DS, so probably won't this time either!


What I miss: Alcoholic beverages... It's going to suck not being able to drink this summer!


What I'm looking forward to: 20w ultrasound- can't wait to figure out what this little one is!


Milestone: Uh.. I'm over 1/3 of the way there? Nothing exciting at this moment!

Our little peanut!

It's about time for an update, and I have something great to add today! I had an ultrasound yesterday afternoon, and we got to see our little one again, finally looking like a baby rather than just a blip on the screen! When the ultrasound tech first put the probe on, the baby was still because he/she was sleeping. The tech wiggled the probe around a bit to wake her up, and we got some terrific shots! I only have one scanned as of right now, so I'll post it, but I'll probably add some of the others later!



Anyways, baby was measuring about 3 days ahead, which is fantastic (keep growing strong little one!!!). Everything looked good as far as we could tell! We asked the technician if she could check and see the gender and take a guess. She said that she'd been seeing a lot of little boy parts lately, but didn't see anything dangling on our little one! It's far to early to go out and buy pink, but I'm definitely excited at the prospect of having a little girl! We would SO be done with this babymaking nonsense if that is the case! Snip, snip, hubby!



Well, without further ado, here is our little one!

And, my "weekly" that is really not so weekly, seeing as how I haven't done it in 3 weeks update...
How far along: 13w 3days
Total weight gain: I'm starting to gain some weight back, finally. I was at 194 at my lightest, and the scale read 198 today, so 4 lbs so far?
How much does baby weigh: Not much, I'm sure- it's pretty tiny yet! The tech said he/she was 3 inches long though!
Maternity clothes: Have broken down and finally started wearing them- some of the pants that fit just right last week are definitely on the tight side this week!
Stretch marks: Oh, hell, I've had them since high school. I didn't need pregnancy to give me stretch marks!
Sleep: Still feel tired all the time, have been waking up a lot in the middle of the night, not to pee or anything, just randomly waking up. It's annoying!
Best moment this week: Getting to see our little one again!
Movement: None yet, though I feel my ute expanding, and sometimes feel flutteryness that I can't determine if it's just gas (probably) or actually movement. I know I'll probably feel it earlier this time, just b/c I know what I'm looking for!
Food cravings: No cravings, but I can FINALLY eat again! Meat doesn't make me want to hurl anymore!
Belly button in or out: Still an innie- never popped out with DS, so probably won't this time either!
What I miss: Alcoholic beverages... It's going to suck not being able to drink this summer!
What I'm looking forward to: Feeling the baby move- it will be so reassuring!
Milestone: Today is my first official day in the second trimester! I've made it past the biggest danger of miscarriage!