One week

How is it possible that we have a one week old already?  It is so surreal and sometimes I still feel like I need to pinch myself to make sure that this is real.

Half of our first week was spent in the hospital, and the other half at home.  The days we spent in the hospital are a bit of a blur.  Nurses in and out of the room every couple of hours to check my vitals (my BP was taking it's good old time coming down), give me pain medication, check to see if I pooped (which was a VERY scary thing after having the c-section!)  and check Hudson's vitals.  Then add in the lactation consultants because he wasn't at all interested in latching.  Then add the doctors to check my incision multiple times a day and to check Hudson for jaundice, etc.  

I can say that every one of our nurses was awesome.  One was a bit awkward, but they were all incredibly helpful and accommodating and had excellent bedside manner.  If I could somehow thank each and every one of them individually (which I did every time they came in) in some large way, I would.  They made our extended stay so much easier. I could not have asked for a better staff throughout our five days.

So, a few things about Hudson's first week!

1 - Diapering.  My predicted "big baby" turned out to be a peanut.  He is a bit too big for premie diapers, but the newborn size is slightly loose on him.  What does that mean?  The boy pees through outfits like it's his job!  Now, part of this has been my fault.  I admit that I forget to "tuck it down" at least once or twice a day.  Ahh.. boys!  He is also notorious for peeing all over the place as we are changing his diapers! It doesn't matter if we try to cover it or make it as speedy as possible.  He finds a way!  This leads right in to number 2.

2 - Laundry.  People have told me that I would be doing a lot of baby laundry, and I believed them.  However, I didn't realize the volume of that laundry!  As a result of my little man peeing through multiple outfits a day, I can literally do 2+ loads of baby laundry a day.  Not only does he soak his outfits, but also his crib sheets, changing pads, and receiving blankets.  I can honestly say that I LOVE doing baby laundry.  Nothing is cuter than folding those teeny, tiny (I had to go buy a few more newborn items since he is so small!) little onesies and pants.  And the socks.. oh my cuteness!

3 - Help.  We were discharged from the hospital Monday afternoon.  My mom came Monday night and spent the first couple of days and nights with us to help us adjust and figure things out.  I cannot thank her enough.  The extra set of hands and experience was so beyond helpful and appreciated.  She is also coming back tonight to spend the weekend with us!  Not only did she help out with night feedings, changings, etc., but she also cleaned our house and did ALL of our laundry so that I could rest as much as possible.  I am so lucky that she has the ability to do this and WANTS to as well.  Love you, Mom!

4 - Adjusting to the dogs.  We had some ideas as to how the dogs would act/react when we brought Hudson home, but you never know for sure until you are home.  Matt carried Hudson in to the house in his car seat.  We sat the seat on the floor and let the dogs loose.  Rooney was first in line - of course.  He smelled, he licked, and then he dropped his stuffed ball in the seat and looked at Hudson like he was supposed to throw it for him!  Success!  Sophie was next.  She simply smelled, wagged her tail and walked away.  They both love to smell him constantly.  Rooney still licks him every chance he gets--especially his feet.  Overall, the adjustment has been smooth and the dogs have exceeded our expectations!  Rooney likes to lay in front of the crib and Sophie gets all worked up when Hudson cries.  She alerts us (like we don't already know) and shows genuine concern.  It is so cute.  I can see this turning into a classic "a boy and his dogs" in the future :)

5 - Sleeping.  I hope I don't jinx myself by including this topic in this post!  My boy is an excellent sleeper.  Our first night home was rough.  He didn't sleep AT ALL.  He was restless, he kept looking for food, he peed through jammies, etc.  We decided to increase his food intake (I'll touch on that later) and put him in his crib rather than his bassinet the second night.  What a world of difference!  He likes to move!  As soon as you lay him down, he rolls to his side - either one.  He didn't have the room to do this in the bassinet.  He starts out facing one way and is always facing the complete opposite direction when he wakes up!  The past two nights he has slept in four hour increments.  Basically, we feed him at 10:30 and then put him to bed.  He wakes up to eat around 2:30 and then immediately goes back to sleep.  He then gets up around 6:30 to eat again.  At this point, I get up for the day.  He does go back to sleep, but not in his crib.  He also does not like being swaddled.  He tolerates it from the chest down, but he wants his arms free.  They are always stretched out above his head - just like his momma sleeps :)  Sometimes, he takes a pacifier, sometimes he does not.  Depends on how he is feeling that day, I guess!  So, overall.. we have been EXTREMELY LUCKY with his sleeping habits. I hope they continue!

6 - Feeding.  I tried breast feeding when we were in this hospital.  Hudson refused to latch and stay latched.  We tried the shield.  Same result.  So after a day, we started supplementing with formula to make sure he was getting enough to eat.  I was then given a hospital grade pump and told to pump 4-5 times a day.  I.made.nothing.  I pumped 4-5 times a day on Sunday and Monday and literally had nothing to show for it.  MAYBE a half a syringe full, but that's it.  When we were discharged, we were told to give him 1.5 ounces of formula at each feeding and to continue to pump to see if my milk would ever come in.  I was also given Fenugreek to take three times a day.  Tuesday morning was the turn around!  I pumped and actually had something to show for it!  Now, not near enough to cover even on full feeding, but it was something.  But, that has continued to increase!  So, what are we currently doing?  He gets 2.5-3 ounces per feeding.  He tells us when he is done.  Sometimes this is breast milk, sometimes it is formula.  We try to do breast milk during the day and then prepare the formula bottles for the night feedings.  Matt generally feeds him because I pump during this time.  I am happy to report that I currently have two frozen bags and three full storage bottles in my refrigerator at this time!  I do adjust my pumping schedule at least twice a day so I can feed him as well.  I love that time.

I did have an appointment with the lactation consultant on Wednesday.  At this time, no matter what she did, Hudson would still not remain latched.  So after discussion, this is our plan of action and what we will continue to do.  It works for our family and he is still benefitting from breast milk - just from a bottle instead.  And I am a-ok with that!  Again, we still supplement with formula so that he is getting the amount he needs.

And finally, a small update on me.  I am still taking pain medication 4 times within 24 hours.  I can tell you when it is starting to wear off!  My stomach muscles are not as sore as they were at the beginning of the week, but they are not completely back to normal.  My incision is looking great (I think anyway, but I'm not a doctor!) and seems to be healing very well.  I do have some pain around the area, but nothing major.  I think I have finally gained back most of my energy from the 32 hours of labor/pushing.. and that is a huge help!  I have my one week check-up later today (with my bff, Dr. Smith), so we will see what she has to say and go from there.  Overall, I think that my recovery has been pretty smooth.  I did need to catch up on my rest, and thankfully have an amazing husband and mom that gave me the opportunity to do so.  I just have to watch my activity throughout the day.  

With all of that being said, I will leave you with a few pictures from our first week!

Hudson's birth story

Or better known as "the day(s) I was thankful I didn't have a birth plan because it would have gone done the crap shoot fast".  

This post is going to be long.. because let's be honest, it was a LONG process!

It all began June 19th, 2014.  I had my weekly (38+5) appointment with my OB.  Matt and I hung around the house all morning, got ready, and headed into the doctor at 1:15.  They took me back immediately.  The nurse weighed me and I was still clocking in at a total weight gain of 51 pounds.  Oh well.. they've been telling me all along that I'm having a big baby!  Next came the usual.. questions and vitals.  Questions were all the same, however.. vitals were a different story.  She took my blood pressure and wouldn't tell me what it was.  All she said was that I needed to lie on my left side on the table until the doctor game in.  I followed instructions and five minutes later the doctor was in going through the same steps.  She told me she could do the rest of the exam or I could simply go to labor and delivery and have it done there.. but I was going to labor and delivery regardless for monitoring.  Huh?  Wha?  What was my blood pressure?  It was a whopping 140/110.  I wasn't worked up, I hadn't done anything different with my day.. nothing.  It just seemed to sky rocket for no reason.  

She told us to pick up our bags from home and get on our way ASAP.  We checked in to L&D at 2:00 Thursday (19th) afternoon.  Within five minutes I was hooked up to all of the lovely machines.. including one that took my BP every ten minutes.  We could read the screens.. it wasn't changing.  If anything, my bottom number was increasing.  But what we did find interesting was the fact that the other screen showed that my contractions were becoming much more frequent and consistent.  I had actually gone in to labor on my own!

The on-call midwife came in after about three hours of monitoring and told me that I had officially been diagnosed with gestational hypertension and that I was being admitted and induced immediately, even though Hudson's heart rate looked great.  Holy crap!  By this time my mom and sister had arrived, so we gathered our things and headed to my official labor and delivery room.  I hadn't had anything to eat since 11:00 that morning and it was now 6:00pm.  They were kind enough to bring me soup and a sandwich to chow down on before starting the pitocin.  

My pitocin was officially started around 6:00 pm at a level of 2--whatever that means.  At that point I was about 4 cm dilated and 80% effaced.  My contractions started to get stronger almost immediately, but not to the point where I couldn't handle them.  My nurse, Alex, was awesome.  She asked me literally every ten minutes if I was ready for my epidural.  You may think like it sounds early and often, but L&D was overfull that night and the hospital only had one anesthesiologist working the night shift so she knew it would take time once I made the decision.  Around 1:30 am I told her I would be ready any time.  Not necessarily because the pain was unbearable, but more because my contractions were every two minutes at this point but I had made no progress, so I knew it was going to be a long night and I wanted to get some rest.  Alex was 100% correct.. it was 3:45 am when I finally got my epidural and I was at the point where the pain was too much - or so I thought.

The epidural was one of the most bizarre things I have ever felt, but the relief was amazing and almost immediate.  However, for some reason I still could not rest.. adrenaline, I'm sure.  The doctor came in at 6:00 am to check me again.  No change in 12 hours and my pitocin was now at a level 14 - again, whatever that means.  She said the doctor starting with the 8:00 am shift would be in to see me and we would re-evaluate.  At 8:10, the midwife on duty for the day came in to check me.  Again, no progress and she said that Hudson's head was nowhere near being locked in or even in the right position.  She left the room to go speak to the on-call doctor (who would have to perform the c-section if I needed one) and determine between the two of them if it was worth continuing to labor, or if a c-section was the way to go.  The doctor (of course one I had not seen during any of my appointments) came in and examined me.  She agreed that his head was not in the correct position, but her solution was to lay me on one side for an hour, and then the other for an hour.. and continue to shift back and forth.  She said she would be back in around noon or 1 to check again.  At this time, I officially started to hate Dr. Smith.  

I laid on my left side.  I laid on my right side.  Left.  Right.  Left.  Right.  Time to be re-examined.  NO PROGRESS.  However, my water broke at this time.  As a result, she told me to continue on the pitocin and see if I progress any farther.  Dr. Smith came back around 4 to check me again and I was now dilated 9cm and was 100% effaced.  And my epidural had officially worn off!  They called the anesthesiologist to give me a top off.  He eventually showed up and did his job, but it seemed to take forever to kick in and my contractions were intense.  In fact, I completely dilated during this time.  At 5:00, nurse Christy asked me if I wanted to start pushing because they felt his head had shifted SOME.  Still not where it needed to be, but SOME.  I agreed.  At 5:05 I started pushing.  With every contraction.  At 7:00, my bff Dr. Smith came in to see how things were going.  Obviously, not well.  She examined me again.  After two full hours of pushing, not only had my epidural worn off AGAIN, but his head had barely moved.  So what did she do?  First, she gave another nurse permission to send someone in room 11 to the OR for a c-section.  Second, she sat there and made me push for another half an hour in four different positions.. all while having no pain meds.  Newsflash - my pain tolerance is NOT HIGH.  And it hurt.  Like a mother.

At 7:30 I lost it.  Completely lost it.  The tears started to fall, sobs came out of my mouth (I had been silent to this point), and my breathing started to go all over and I needed oxygen.  What did my bff Dr. Smith say?  Her exact words were:  "I don't think you have it in you to finish this labor, so I guess we can start getting things set up for a cesarian."  WTF woman.  First, your bedside manner is complete shit.  Second, I don't have it in me? I was now up to 30 hours of active labor.  Third, I had yet to complain to this point.  This was the first, and only time, the f-bomb came out of my mouth.. and I believe it was well deserved.  Nurse Bam, who was freaking awesome, told Dr. Smith that it was time and she was going to prep the OR.  THANK YOU, BAM.  I didn't want a c-section going into this, but after 30 hours and no progress in position, I was damn tired.  It was obvious that Hudson had no intention of moving into the correct position and making his debut naturally.

At 8:00, I was wheeled into the OR.. still drug-less.  What was the first thing I did?  Threw up all over.  Yep.. all of those ice chips during the two hours of pushing were now deposited in the OR.  Sorry.  Not really.

I don't remember much from the c-section.  By this point, my level of exhaustion was over the top.  It took all I had to keep my eyes open for certain parts and to answer the questions I needed to answer.  I remember going numb and testing all parts to see if I could feel anything.  The next thing I remember was Matt sitting next to me trying to ask me questions.  The only thing I could say, in my 17 year old drunk voice, was "I threw up".  Cool.  A few minutes later, there was some major pushing and pulling going on.  Again, I was in and out, but they are not gentle!  Next, crying.. my boy had arrived and he had a good set of lungs!  I know the nurses took Matt back to see Hudson, but I don't remember any of that.  The next thing I remember is Matt showing Hudson to me and the nurse laying him on my chest.  I was able to pry my eyes open long enough to get a picture or two.. and after that, I don't remember a single thing other than crazy pushing and pulling.  At one point, I thought I was on a trampoline because they had me bouncing around that much!  I also remember that the song playing in the room when he was born was Iggy Azalea, Fancy!  

I was wheeled into recovery around 9:15.  I vaguely remember saying goodbye to all of our family that had been with us through the whole process.  And then I remember finally getting my own room and seeing Hudson for more than two minutes.  I also finally got his stats.  He weighed 6 pounds 4.9 ounces and was 19 inches long.  My big boy was a peanut!  He was born at exactly 8:13 pm and his APGAR score was a 9.  He was one healthy little boy :)

The nurses decided it would be best to keep him in the nursery for the night because Matt and I were exhausted and I had been through so much.  Honestly, I didn't argue.  I barely remember his birth.. I was in no shape to take care of him during the night.

Thirty-three hours later, I finally had my baby boy in my arms and could not have been happier.  However, I am extremely disappointed that I was not able to truly enjoy his birth and remember all of it.  That is an incredibly special moment, and it will always be a blur for me.  I blame Dr. Smith for this.  She knew at for sure at noon that he was not moving.. and continued to have me labor and push before making the decision to take him.  To me, that is disappointing and she sucks.  But again, in the end, I have my precious baby boy.. and that makes up for all of it.

I know this post is not even close to being well written, but I am pretty busy these days and wouldn't have it any other way.  I will leave you with pictures from our experience!

Two years

June 15th.  Hard to believe that two full years have passed since we tied the knot on that crazy-windy-nor-easter-high-tide-day in the Outer Banks.  It has been an eventful two years, but I wouldn't trade a single second for the world!  

A lot has happened since our first anniversary.  At this time last year, we were recovering from a miscarriage and just waiting for my cycle to return to so we could start again.  We were lounging on the beach in the Outer Banks soaking up every second of relaxation that we could.  We were grieving, but preparing to push forward.

We had a lot to celebrate this year.  

• Our third cycle (2nd FET) resulted in a positive pregnancy.. and our little boy is due in less than two weeks! 
• We updated some rooms in our home.
• We worked on our yard more than we care to admit - and have many more years of work to come!
• We paid off my student loan.
• We traveled to San Francisco for a long weekend.
• We celebrated the holidays with family.
• We put an entire room of furniture together - TOGETHER.. without hurting each other!
• We celebrated the birth of our second niece.
• We celebrated my brother's college graduation.
• We finally cleaned and somewhat organized our basement (we still have work to do there, but at least our boxes are unpacked!)
• We trained Rooney without taking him to obedience class.
• And so much more..

They key word in all of these things is WE.  We spent a lot of time this year, just the two of us, just being together.  It was perfect and I enjoyed every single second of it.

So, how did we celebrate?  Well, I'm not allowed to travel anywhere at this point, so we stayed local.  We had breakfast with Matt's mom and sister, did a few things around the house, visited with my mom, brother, sister, and Katie (brother's girlfriend) as they stopped on their way home from the beach, and then we had our "date night".  We had dinner at Texas Roadhouse (I crave steak constantly) and played a round of mini golf after.  The plan was to top off the night with ice cream, but believe it or not, I was not hungry enough to devour any ice cream!

We also exchanged gifts.  The traditional gift for year two is cotton.  Yeah, that's an easy one.  NOT.  What do you get someone that is cotton?  I spent hours and hours searching for the perfect gift for Matt.. and finally found it!  Matt teaches 7th grade World Geography and he LOVES to travel.  We both do.  I found a shop on ETSY that sells world maps printed on cotton canvas.  The purpose of the map is to use the colored pins to pin places you have been individually, together, and places you hope to go in the future.  Could it be any more perfect?  Nope!  I did a little DIY to frame it so we can hang it in our living room.  Here is a photo of the finished product.

I was also able to personalize the map with our name and wedding date.  I'm hoping to have it hung by the end of the week.

Matt did equally as well with his gift!  I love pajamas.. all kinds of cute pajamas.  He got me a pajama gram that ended up being for more than just me!  He got a set for him, me and Hudson.. all exactly the same!  The only difference it the type of top.  First, they are super SUPER soft.  Second, this is so incredibly sentimental.  I am so excited to wear them!

He also picked out a beautiful set of slide earring for my Pandora posts.  I don't have a picture of those.

I DO NOT need gifts to make a day perfect or to even celebrate.. but I think we hit the nail on the head this year.

I will end this post with a "tribute" to my awesome husband.  There is no way in hell I would have survived everything that I have throughout the past two years without him by my side.  He is my rock, my shoulder to cry on, my ear to listen, my sounding board, my soul mate, my best friend.  He makes my life so much better and I would not want to go through a single day without him by my side.  Happy Anniversary, Matt.  I love you more than you know.  <3

Week 37

FULL TERM BABY!!!!!

How far along: 37 weeks (as of 6.07.14)

Gender: It's a BOY!

Baby is: The size of a winter melon.. about 20 inches long and about 6.5 pounds.

Weight gain: 48 pounds as of this week's OB appointment.  This number seems to have gone down.. HOWEVER, this week they used a different scale and my appointment was in the morning (I usually go after work) on a day when I wasn't working.. so there is a good chance I just didn't have all of my water weight for the day.. yet!

Maternity clothes: Now that school is out, I am living in Matt's shorts and t-shirts.. and dressing up with the occasional maxi dress and skirt when I need to go out in public.

Stretch marks: Nadda.

Belly button in or out: Still in.

Sleep: Depends on the day.  Some nights I sleep well, others I am awake for hours.  I do get up to pee at least 4 times per night, but as I said.. sometimes I can immediately fall back asleep.. others I cannot.  I have also been waking up with "tingly" hands this week.. which I am assuming means that carpal tunnel has set in.  No biggy!

Best moment this week: SCHOOL'S OUT FOR SUMMER (pretend I am jamming out with my kick ass air guitar and 80s hair).  Yep.. I am pumped!  I also passed my 24 hour urine test and my blood pressure has stayed steady this week.  It is still elevated, but my doctors are not currently concerned.

Movement: Some days he is incredibly active, while others he lays a little on the low side.  I am starting to feel some more movement at night.

Cravings: Steak, junk food of all kinds, and ice water.

Queasy or sick: Feeling good!  

Looking forward to: Do I really need to answer this???  I am officially full term and our countdown is in the teens.  I am SO looking forward to meeting our little guy!

Rooney ALWAYS has to be a part of photo time.  He cracks me up!

Thirty things

I got this idea from one of the other blogs that I follow and decided to run with it myself.  I just turned the dreaded 30 (it really isn't bad!) and thought I would take the time and share thirty things about myself that you may, or may not already know.

1. I am the oldest of three.  I am seven years older than my brother and ten years older than my sister.  While our age gaps definitely provided for many challenges growing up, we are all three super close.  I may even be a bit over-protective at times!
2. I have a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Education with a minor in Information Systems.  I have a Master's Degree in Classroom Technology and have also completed half of my MBA program.
3. I played field hockey for most of my life and coached the sport for a few years.  Four years ago I was asked to coach our girls lacrosse team - even though I never played.  I agreed to help out for one year. Four years later, I walked away from field hockey and could not love lacrosse more!
4. I teach high school Accounting, Finance, Career Awareness, and computer courses.
5. I am a news junkie.  Matt hates it.  I could watch the news all day every day.
6. I have always had a dog.  We had a toy poodle and german shepherd while growing up.  We then had two labs.  I got Sophie shortly after moving out on my own and we got Rooney a little over a year ago.  I love dogs - especially labs.
7. Matt and I went to the same college - 2 years of which were at the same time.  While we didn't know each other, we have figured out that we were definitely at parties together.
8. I worked at a bank while I was in college.  On December 30th, 2005, I was robbed by a guy with a samurai sword and a bomb. I can tell you the exact time (to the second), the exact words on the note he handed me, and the exact amount of money in the specific denominations that he got.  I took two days off and returned to work on January 2nd.  I had to attend four preliminary hearings.  The guy that robbed me escaped from one of them - guns drawn and craziness everywhere.  He later car jacked a woman and was caught by US Marshals.  He is now in a federal pen for 20 years.
9. I was "arrested" when I was 16.  I was with my high school boyfriend and his friends at a carnival (keeping it classy).  His friends were joking around in the parking lot and at the same time a local business was being robbed.  The cops suspected the boys since they were messing around.  We were all innocent, but still had to go to the station and give statements.
10. I love junk food.  Greasy, fatty, sugary junk food.
11. I worked at a chip plant in high school.  To this day, they are my favorite chips and I will drive across town to buy them.  (Only one store where I live sells them.)
12. I moved to Hanover after graduating college.  I knew no one and moved simply for the job.  I really do love it here.
13. I love roller coasters, but hate rides that spin in circles.
14. I get incredibly car sick when I am not driving.  Sometimes, sitting in the passenger seat is ok, but I generally get sick sitting there as well.  It poses an issue at times when I have to travel on a school bus to away games!
15. I learned how to drive on a stick shift and wouldn't want it any other way.  It's a skill that I think everyone should know!
16. I love sports.  I have favorite teams for almost every sport.  I could sit and watch sports with Matt all weekend long and be perfectly content.
17. I grew up in a very small hick "town".  It is actually classified as a village.  The things we did to entertain ourselves growing up make me laugh.  We rode bikes everywhere.  And I know what the term "possum-beating" means.  
18. Everyone in my family hunts.  Hard core.  I can spot a deer on the side of the road from a mile away.  And yes, we eat everything that is killed.  Chances are, if you've been to my house, you've eaten deer meat in one form or another.
19. I graduated high school with 94 other kids.  We went to elementary school from K-6 and high school from 7-12.  There was no middle school.  I thought that was the norm.
20. I love to travel.  But I hate to leave my dogs.  I wish we could travel the world with them.
21. I have been to four countries in Europe (Spain, Italy, Croatia, Monaco.. and technically Germany if you count a layover in an airport!), Canada, the Dominican Republic, Bahamas, Mexico, Belize, Honduras, California, Kentucky, Ohio, and the entire East Coast from New York to Florida.
22. The beach is my favorite, but I hate sand.  It's fine on my feet, but I don't want it anywhere near my hands, legs, or anywhere else.  Yuck.
23. Despite hating sand, Matt and I got married on the beach in the Outer Banks.  My dress was covered in sand and salt water, but it didn't phase me that day.
24. I've always wanted four kids.  While that is no longer realistic, I plan to savor every single second I have with the child/children that I am blessed to have.
25. I am OCD.  My room used to be a mess when I lived at home.  Now, I hate when one small thing it out of place.  My windows have to be open to the same height, blinds either all open or closed (and at the same height) and things need to be in exact locations on counters/sinks.  It's a disease!
26. Fires freak me out.  When I was in elementary school we always had to watch a vide of a house burning during fire something or other week.  Ever since, I've been paranoid!  However, I do love a good bon fire!
27. Everything tastes better on the grill.  I would grill everything if I could.
28. I love naps.  If I could take a nap every day after work, I would.  This could be a 15 minute nap - which Matt claims is not even close to an actual nap!  I am also one of those people that needs to have a certain amount of sleep to function.
29. I hate coffee.  I've tried, but just can't make myself like it.  The same goes for Yogurt.  And I really, really want to like yogurt!
30. I hate exercising.. but I think I am going to have to start liking it :)  I see no fun in running and find that I am miserable every time I try.  Maybe with the addition of a jogging stroller I will change my mind!

So there you have it.. my thirty things!  I hope I didn't bore you too much.  Hope you all are enjoying the beginning of summer.. I know that I am!

Week 36

How far along: 36 weeks (as of 5.31.14)

Gender: It's a BOY!

Baby is: The size of a honeydew.. about 19 inches long and about 5.5 pounds.

Weight gain: 51 pounds as of this week's OB appointment.  Yes.. I've officially broken the 50 pound mark.  Oy vey..

Maternity clothes: Yes.  Maxi skirts and dresses are about the only things that are even remotely comfortable right now.

Stretch marks: Nadda.

Belly button in or out: Still in.

Sleep: Sleep is starting to become a thing of the past.  I do sleep for a few hours each night, but they are interrupted with bathroom breaks and insomnia.  I am loving naps right now!

Best moment this week: The last day of school with kiddos!  That means it is ALMOST summer and summer holds amazing things for us this year!  I also think that H's head has dropped at least a little bit as I am feeling movement super low.

Movement: He is an active little guy during the day.  There is generally a foot in my ribs and a knee or elbow sticking out of my side.  But like I said above, his head (or hands) is moving low as well.

Cravings: Bagels, grapes with fruit dip, chocolate.  And Ice water.. I feel like I can't drink enough.

Queasy or sick: Feeling good!  

Looking forward to: One.more.day.of.work!  I am literally counting down the hours!  The end of work (for the year) signifies how close we are to meeting Hudson.  I am seriously so excited!

I had to chaperone the senior class trip to Hershey Park this week.  When we left for work, I assumed that Matt had put Rooney in his crate.  Matt assumed that I had put Rooney in his crate.  Turns out, neither of us put Rooney in his crate.. so he had pure freedom for a good eight hours!  As bad as this looks, he really on shredded some magazines as well as the basket housing the magazines.  

Walking around an amusement park for 10+ hours in 85 degree weather calls for some major icing!

Friday brought the last day of school.  While I enjoyed the kids I had this year, I can't say that I'm disappointed to see the year end!  I am moving rooms for next year, so I had to take down and unpack everything and have it moved to my new location, so my room looks mighty plain!  I need to regroup and rest up for next year.  Plus, everyone loves a little summer vacay!

Friday night was graduation.  The weather was perfect, as was the ceremony.

Friday also brought my 36 week doctor appointment.  I am officially in the weekly stage! However, my blood pressure was elevated at this appointment.  It has been consistent at every single appointment up until this point.  They took it three times throughout the half hour I was there and it was the same each time.  This led to me being awarded this big orange jug as well as an apparatus to attach to the toilet!  I did my 24 hour urine test yesterday.  I dropped off my lovely jug and got blood work taken this morning.  I have an appointment tomorrow to review the results and re-check my blood pressure as well as my extreme swelling.. and we will go from there!

Saturday morning we woke up and started doing some work around the house.  I saw a wine cork laying on the floor in the dining room.  As I picked it up, I turned around and saw this "beautiful" sight.  Ugh.  Somehow a bottle of red wine popped open and ran all over the white carpet and furniture during the night.. and was already dry.  What a freaking mess!  Luckily, we borrowed a friend's carpet cleaner (I'd say it's time we invest in one of our own) and Matt spent a couple of hours going over the spot repeatedly.  Every single drop came up!  If you didn't know the spill was there, you'd never see it.

And finally.. Sunday morning snuggles with these two are the best!  They might be bed hogs, but they are so cute while doing so :)

Oh.. and this is our weekly "struggle"! haha  These two love to be in every shot possible!

Happy Monday, all!  Cheers to it being *almost* summer!