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Here's to a new chapter in our lives!
Hello Everyone!! Ryan and Kristen here, elated to share with you our exciting news! We recently found out we are expecting a baby in July!!! We couldn't be happier and can't wait to meet our little bundle of joy!!
We got married in May of 2011 and have been dating ten years prior. We have always dreamt of creating a family together, but first we traveled, experienced life and wanted to wait for the right time to start a family. And here we are, turning the page, to a new chapter in our lives.
Hope you enjoy following my nine month journey!
6 weeks
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Thoughts and feelings on November 14, 2012
Last night I was determined to make myself some pancakes for breakfast. I found this really easy recipe which called for two eggs, one whole banana and a dash of cinnamon. It was delicious and yet fluffy! I ate my banana pancakes with chia seeds, sunflower butter and maple syrup with a glass of milk.
How I am feeling: Here I am on my first day of week 5. The bean is the size of an apple seed, .13mm long, amazing how things in life works!! I still do not feel pregnant because I have not experienced any major symptoms yet. I really shouldnt complain because I heard they are no fun. Although, I will say, I have been going to the bathroom more frequently, getting tired early in the evening and feel some twinges/cramps on my left side. Sometimes I get this feeling of fullness, but I am hungry and dont know what I am in the mood for to eat.
Also, I've noticed my heightened sense of smell, yesterday I was at the library and I was in a room waiting for the little one to get done with arts and crafts. The room was near a closet with cleaning supplies and the whiff of windex was just so strong as well as my perfume today!
Another reason I don't feel pregnant yet is because we have not announced our wonderful news just yet. We are planning on sharing the news with my parents this weekend over dinner and the in laws next week when they spend the night for Thanksgiving. Ryan and I are beyond thrilled and cannot wait to meet our lil bean.
My energy levels are great so far, feeling great, productive and happy. I am still in awe that I have fallen pregnant all within 9-10 months of trying!
Today, I went in for my second blood test at the doctor's and right now I am anxiously waiting upon a response from Ryan. He usually takes the call for me. Last blood test I took was on Monday November 12th... they confirmed I was pregnant and my hcg and progrestrone levels were normal!!!
*Just called the office to find out how my blood work turned out today. As the nurse said, my progrestrone was supposed to increase 60% from Monday's test and it went up 200%!!! I am SO happy right now!!! Yippie!!
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How I shared the baby news with my parents.
Morning! It's 6:45am on Saturday (11/17) and I should be sleeping in but I'm not. I actually woke up around 5:30am, my daily wake up time and tried to fall back to sleep, but I couldn't. Cuddled with Ryan and closed my eyes in hopes to catch some snooze. Fail. I crawled out of bed, came downstairs in excitement of today's plans.
What's going on today, you ask. Today is the day we are annoucing our pregnancy to my parents!! Since I got pregnant last Friday, Nov 9th, I have kept this a secret and it has been nice, but I hate hiding things from my mom, my best friend. I haven't told her or my dad anything yet because I want to reveal the secret as a family and surprise them with a plan I have.
As close as my family is, we usually we have our Sunday dinners twice a month, but this weekend is going to be different. We are hosting today instead because I can't think to wait another day to share the exciting news with them. As for my In laws, I truly wish they could partake in this special occasion with us tonight, instead we are going to tell them next week when they are spending the night here for Thanksgiving.
We are getting together early this morning to transport some furinture to the consignment shop and having a lentil/pasta dinner around 5:30pm this evening. If you didnt know, lentils when eaten on New Years Eve is known for good luck in the Italian tradition. As soon as I had to think of what to make, lentils popped up in my head, even though it isn't New Years Eve, I still believe it brings luck into our lives.
So, the real reason I am excited for today is when we reveal our secret to my parents is their reaction and how we plan to tell them. During our Sunday dinners, we usually set the table up nicely with a table cloth, wine glasses and white cloth napkins. I've had this idea in my mind for when the time was right to do this. I went out on Tuesday to Carter's and bought a pacakge of onesies. I plan to use an onesie as my mother's napkin. It folds just the same as the cloth napkins. I really cannot wait to see their faces when they open the onesie up!! I will let you know how it goes......
**Hello again, from Sunday morning. I wanted to give you an update on how it went yesterday.
I had butterflies in my stomach all day, maybe it was the baby dancing in excitement. I couldn't wait to sit down to dinner and have my mom pull out the napkin over her lap, only to find out she dropped the onesie. My dad was sititng next to her, reached for it and gave it to her thinking it was the napkin. My mom opened the napkin and was in shock and just so happy when she saw it. This was right before we sat down to eat, of course she was too excited to even pay any attention to the plate in front of her. She asked questions after questions and it got me more and more excited for July. There were tears shed throughout the evening in excitement and awe.
My parents are excited that their first grand child will be calling them grandma/grandpa in July. We look forward to celebrating the next nine months of my pregnancy and the day the baby is born together. <3 It's going to be a fun and amazing nine months!!
Sure, it's still too early to announce to our friends, but we will share the news with the immediate family over Thanksgiving as well as the In Laws. We plan on waiting until 12 weeks (week after Xmas-middle of January) to share the wonderful news with friends and more family!!
Yet, we are beyond excited as a family of two turning into three maybe four? ;)
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My very first ultrasound...
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My very first ultrasound...
Hello friends and family, I'm here to share the wonderful news as today was my first appointment for my ultrasound!! Baby Bean is measured at 6w1d and heartbeat of 120!! I have been extremely anxious and excited for this appointment as I had hoped our Bean would stick! So far so good, the doctor said everything looks normal and the baby is the size of a grain of rice! How tiny!
Lately, in the last two days, I have felt nausated after I ate anything. My boobs sure are growing bigger as each day passes. I've had high energy since I found out I was pregnant until yesterday I felt like I was hit by a truck or felt like what was a hungover (I promise I didn't drink the night before). No fun! I've been taking cat naps late afternoon and those seem to help a lot!
I go in for my second ultrasound next Wednesday, baby Bean should be bigger!! ;)
*Second ultrasound went very well. Baby bean's heartbeat was between 140-170 and everything looked normal. I was impressed to actually see our baby bean in the ultrasound pictures at this appointment. It's amazing they go from tiny to looking more like a baby in a week! I can't wait to go in at 12-13 weeks for my next ultrasound!! We will definitely see a bigger baby in my belly!! First pre-natal appointment is January 2nd!!
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8 Weeks... How I am feeling..
Hello friends, I haven't posted in a while because I've been busy with work and holiday is right around the corner. I can't believe December is half way over already! Is this going to happen with my nine month journey!? I'm eager to get past my first trimester as it has been tough this past week with being nauseous here and there. It's no fun!
Anyways, I thought it'd be fun to do a "how far along I am" pregnancy survey for your entertainment.
How far along? 8 weeks!
Baby’s size? Raspberry, .63 inches, .04 oz
Total weight gain/loss: 1-2 pound
Stretch marks? Nope.
Sleep: Pretty good! It’s time to invest in a body pillow of some sort in the near future though…
Best moment this week: Days when I woke up feeling energetic and didn't feel like I was going to throw up.
Miss Anything? Not missing much as I have been eating the same as pre-pregnancy.
Movement: Not yet, looking forward to the day when I do feel something in my belly!
Food cravings: Fresh piece of soft WW toast with melted munster cheese! So good!
Anything making you queasy or sick: Whenever I see or hear the word salmon I get really grossed out. Pre-pregnancy I would eat it once a week and now I can't even think about it! Yuck. Also, whenever I saute onions/garlic for soups etc and the smell lingers around the house.
Gender: No idea but I have a gut feeling it's a boy!
Labor Signs: None
Symptoms: feel nauseous when I get hungry and an increased appetite. Need to eat something every 30 minutes to an hour.
Belly Button in or out? In
Wedding rings on or off? On!
Happy or moody most of the time: Happy!
Looking forward to: telling my entire family on Christmas day that we are expecting in July over Skype!!!!! Whoo!
I hope you enjoyed my survey. It's been 45 minutes since I last ate lunch, now it's time to go find a snack-y snack! ;)
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Second Trimester is here!!!
Hello friends,
Sorry I didn't mean to fall off the face of the earth. I'm terrible at keeping up with my progress on here and will try my hardest to work on that!!
So, today marks the first day entering my second trimester! I cannot believe time is flying by quickly!! It felt like just yesterday when I took a pregnancy test and found out there was a baby growing inside of me! As you can see from the photos I have posted, I do have a little belly. I think it was mostly bloat up until this week (12 weeks) I started to feel full and rounder. I tried to tuck in my stomach and there's a little pooch! Even when I wake up in the morning, my hands go directly to my stomach as if I am holding my little one in my hand. Lying down, there is also a bump! How exciting! I've been waiting for this day to come around to see that I am growing!!
Want to mention in here that Ryan and I went to our first pre-natal appointment after we returned from our week long trip to Canada. January 2nd, we go in at 11w3d and everything looked normal. Even got to hear the heartbeat with the doppler, the rate was going at 160 and beating fast!! It was the best feeling ever!! It was the first time we heard it together as future mom and dad to be!!! ;)
How I've been feeling? Great actually! I didn't vomit once during my morning sickness stage. Only felt nauseous when I felt hungry and got hunger pains in my stomach. Those were not fun! I'm glad they are over, right now I am just hungry after every meal! I've noticed the past few days I can't clear my plate like I used to pre-pregnancy, otherwise I feel sick and too full. I'm trying to learn how to portion out my meals and I can always have leftovers for lunch or dinner!
Anyways, enough of my babbling, here is my 13 week update:
How far along? 13 weeks!
Baby’s size? Peach, Average size 2.9 inches, .81 oz.
Total weight gain/loss: My weight has been all over but last weigh-in I have gained 1.5 lbs
Stretch marks? Nope.
Sleep: I got a snoogle for Christmas and tested it out this week and the two nights I slept with it, I DID NOT sleep well! I think it's because I am not big enough yet to use it, but I wanted to try it out and get used to it. I stopped and have slept through the night the past 2 nights!
Best moment this week: I may have felt a few flutters in my belly here and there. I can tell if its gas, but it felt like bubbles!! Can't wait to actually feel the kicks! That wont be for a while! Plus I got the BEST pre-natal massage, an hour long!! It was lovely!
Miss Anything? Not missing much as I have been eating the same as pre-pregnancy still.
Movement: Fluttering and bubble-like feeling in my belly!!
Food cravings: Pickles and sour things like green olives and chocolate. Not together at the same time.
Anything making you queasy or sick: My scent of smell has gotten stronger and I get nauseated with some smells. Also, I still can't eat salmon.
Gender: No idea!
Labor Signs: None
Symptoms: Hungry after meals, craving salty foods & fro-yo from 16 handles, feel crampy (RLP?), lower back aches and headaches here and there.
Belly Button in or out? In
Wedding rings on or off? On!
Happy or moody most of the time: So happy!
Looking forward to: my next ultrasound appointment on Tuesday!! I want to hear the heartbeat and
know that everything is going great in my belly!!!!! 
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15 Weeks, feelings and my daily routine, eats...
Hello friends and family,
Here I am, at 15 weeks pregnant, feeling back to my old self, energized, motivated, excited and content. Sitting here in the Children's Library while Fiona is in her story-time class, I am excited to finally write a blog post. I don't know why I usually drift off a few weeks and come back to tell you how I am feeling these days. The last time I posted, I was 13 weeks. Not too far off, but I could do better!
Today I am going to talk about my exercise routine and what I eat daily. I work out almost 5x a week. It may look like I'm obsessed over working out daily, but it makes me feel so good the rest of the day when I get it done first thing in the morning. I eat 5-6 small meals throughout the day. I have a very interesting palate so I make strange concoctions and whatever I am in the mood for. It works for me. So here it goes.....
These past few weeks have been great emotionally and physically. I have not had a problem with waking up at 6am and getting a great sweaty workout in before 7:15a. My exercise routine: Monday: brisk walk, Tuesday: weight training (upper body, Biceps and Triceps), Wednesday: run (30 minutes=2.5-3 miles at 5.5 MPH), Thursday: brisk walk or stationary bike, Friday: rest day, Saturday: brisk walk, Sunday: run or brisk walk. This is not exactly my weekly routine, but you get the idea. I only exercise for 30 minutes every day, none intense, all moderate. When I lift, I use low weights, high repetition until my muscle burns. When I brisk walk, I do level 12-15 hills (highest incline about 12.5 at 3.5-3.8 MPH). Running, I do level 1 which will go up to an incline of 1.5 and at 5.5 MPH. I always make sure I get in a little sweat session to tell me I worked somewhat hard. ;) I've never been into really intense workouts, but I like to sweat.
As far as food goes, I am eating the same way. Lots of vegetables, fruits and protein. First thing when I wake up, I chug my big water bottle and have a mini snack before I head out for the gym. Usually it's half a banana or a handful of nuts/dried fruit. For breakfast, I usually have my two eggs with a toast or a greek yogurt topped with blueberries/kiwi, 1 T soaked chia seeds, sprinkle of walnuts with a splash of milk. Some mornings I would also have cut steel oats, hot or overnight (left in fridge to soak overnight) then add yogurt in the morning with whatever toppings I'm in the mood for. Sometimes over the weekends I'll go the easy route and eat cereal with fruit. Cereal usually doesn't fill me up and makes me hungry 30 minutes later. I like to eat a really good, protein filled breakfast to get me through my morning.
For my mid-morning snack, I have a cup of greek yogurt with nuts or raisins or a banana, or half of a cantaloupe with cottage cheese, or a granola bar.
For lunch, I almost always have a vegetable packed bowl topped with any protein I have available such as 2 T of hummus, any beans I have on hand, sliced chicken, sardines, a cup of nuts, etc. I try to be creative and change my meals daily so I don't get tired of the same old thing. I've tried peanut butter and jelly sandwiches but they don't fill me up as much as salads do. I like the crunchy vegetables and it satisfies me more than carbs.
Mid afternoon snack, mostly an apple, sometimes I'll have a bowl of fruit - whatever I bring to work, i.e., strawberries, blueberries etc.
Dinners varies each week. I create meal plans in my head for the week. Sometimes I'll make seasoned taco beef topped over salad, a vegetable sauté with whole wheat pasta, two slices of vegetable pizza, a massive salad with a vegetable burger with melted cheese, a grass fed cheese burger with side of baked sweet potato fries, baked or grilled salmon with broccoli, baked or grilled chicken with mozzarella cheese/tomatoes/avocado, etc. I can continue my list but I usually make dinner from scratch. I almost never prepare packaged foods. I love and enjoy eating wholesome foods. I feel better about it and it's nice knowing what ingredients are in my meals if I make them myself.
Lastly, my last snack of the night has to be some sort of carbohydrates. I find that if I go to bed with hungry, I wake up starving in the middle of the night or early in the morning looking for something to eat. I would have dry cereal or a toast with any nut butter I'm in the mood for. I also try to drink as much water as I can throughout the day. It has been tough for me the past few weeks because it's so bland but I have to constantly remind myself to drink lots!
Alright, congratulations if you made it this far!! I know I tend to ramble a lot and I thank you for sticking around!! I think I've covered almost everything I do in my daily life other than what I do at work. :) I hope you enjoyed reading and hopefully I helped some of you with ideas of snacks, meals etc.
Have a fabulous day!
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20 Weeks, Half way there!
20 Weeks, Half way there!
How far along? 20 weeks!
Baby’s size? baby is the size of a banana, 6.5 inches and 10.6 oz!
Total weight gain/loss: Not exactly sure but when I weighed myself last time at the gym, I gained 5 lbs.
Stretch marks? Nope. I've been applying a belly/stretch mark cream daily after my shower.
Sleep: It has been hit or miss this week. Some nights great and some nights I toss and turn all night. I still get up fairly early around 5:30-5:45a!
Best moment this week: Getting compliments from strangers and friends telling me I look beautiful and amazing. It made my day!
Miss Anything? Raw sushi and a glass of red wine.
Movement: Constantly feeling movements, not as strong but the baby sure is moving in there! I try to push back when I feel the movements and the baby moves, its amazing. I feel like we are communicating!!
Food cravings: Raw veggies, yes I know! Carrots, sugar snap peas and massive salads.
Anything making you queasy or sick: Certain smells and odors. I was working out last week and there was a guy next to me with cigarette breath ugh, it was making me sick.
Gender: I will be posting about the reveal party. My gut feeling was right!!
Labor Signs: None
Symptoms: Lower back pain, some round ligament pain (RLP), insatiable hunger some days and craving something then go make it and eat it and end up not liking it. ;(
Belly Button in or out? In
Wedding rings on or off? On!
Happy or moody most of the time: Been so negative and defensive towards people lately, but working really hard on being more positive!! Today I feel like a whole different person, in a good way!
Looking forward to: To our ultrasound this Friday with my husband. We can't wait to get more pictures of our baby!
20 Week belly bump.
Overall, I've been feeling great physically, not so much emotionally. I am trying my best to change my attitude towards some things and think more on the positive side. I have a lot of reasons to be happy and not sweat the small stuff! I'm a bit OCD and if something doesn't go my way, I tend to get upset easily. Darn pregnancy hormones! I hope things look up from here on out. I've noticed my belly is getting rounder and heavier and its harder for me to walk up the stairs! I'm out of breath by the time I get to the top!
Work outs have been great, been running, brisk walking and using the elliptical machine. I've been motivated to get out of bed early around 5:45-6a and get my butt to the gym before the crowd. It's a great feeling walking out of there refreshed and ready to start my day!! The other day I made myself so proud, at 19.5 weeks I ran a total of 3.5 miles!! I was so happy and it felt so good!
Energy levels have been great and my fatigue does take over some days! I can't complain, I've been so happy with how well my pregnancy has been going for me!! I think that's all I have for you today. I will write about the reveal party in the next post!
Happy Tuesday everyone!
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Reveal party...2/21. It's a....
I'm going to make this post short and sweet.
When my husband and I went in for the first trimester screening, the technician asked us if we wanted to find out the gender. We said yes, and she told us what it was. It was there and it was obvious! We were very lucky to even find out that early on!
We patiently waited until the 20 week scan to confirm and go ahead and have a reveal party for our families. If you didnt know, my husband has two older brothers, both married, one has two girls and another has three girls. That makes five girls on his side. I am an only child. We felt the reveal party was necessary because, for one, five grand daughters for my in laws and first grand child for my parents. We wanted to make this a special moment.
Finally we go in for my 20 week scan, I was 18.5 weeks when we went in. Got the confirmation, baby is healthy and all looked great!! So we decided to have both families over, my parents, in laws, sister/brother in law (the other brother/sister in law couldn't make it). It was also my husband's 30th birthday the same day we went in so we figured we'd celebrate both occasions at the same! We planned on pizza and cupcakes. After the appointment, we ran to the bakery and ordered the cupcakes to pick up for the following day.
Everyone came over, we were all anxious, ate our pizza quickly and got right to business with the cupcakes. First I presented the cupcakes on a tray....some with an ALL STAR banner for a boy and PRINCESS banner for a girl. My mother brought over two presents, one if its a boy and another if its a girl!
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Reveal party...2/21. It's a....
I'm going to make this post short and sweet.
When my husband and I went in for the first trimester screening, the technician asked us if we wanted to find out the gender. We said yes, and she told us what it was. It was there and it was obvious! We were very lucky to even find out that early on!
We patiently waited until the 20 week scan to confirm and go ahead and have a reveal party for our families. If you didnt know, my husband has two older brothers, both married, one has two girls and another has three girls. That makes five girls on his side. I am an only child. We felt the reveal party was necessary because, for one, five grand daughters for my in laws and first grand child for my parents. We wanted to make this a special moment.
Finally we go in for my 20 week scan, I was 18.5 weeks when we went in. Got the confirmation, baby is healthy and all looked great!! So we decided to have both families over, my parents, in laws, sister/brother in law (the other brother/sister in law couldn't make it). It was also my husband's 30th birthday the same day we went in so we figured we'd celebrate both occasions at the same! We planned on pizza and cupcakes. After the appointment, we ran to the bakery and ordered the cupcakes to pick up for the following day.
Everyone came over, we were all anxious, ate our pizza quickly and got right to business with the cupcakes. First I presented the cupcakes on a tray....some with an ALL STAR banner for a boy and PRINCESS banner for a girl. My mother brought over two presents, one if its a boy and another if its a girl!
Then we each took a cupcake and divided the room up into a boy/girl side. Bit/slice the cupcake and the answer was......
It's a BOY!!!!
Hope you enjoyed finding out how we revealed the secret!! We can't wait to welcome out first boy into this Bartlett Clan with FIVE girls!!
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