"I'm pregnant like Mommy!"

Back in December, it had been a year since Mike and I had started trying for baby G #3. My doctor sent orders to the lab for me to go in for a round of fertility blood work whenever I was ready.

But I wasn't ready yet. It had only been a month or so since I had completely weaned Aurelia and to be truthful, we weren't in any rush. With the possibility of Mike starting a new job in the Fall, we thought it might be smart to try to avoid for a few months so as not to have a baby popping out while Mike was supposed to be teaching his very first college class.

A couple weeks later Mike got his job offer and of course we had to celebrate and of course I wasn't charting or paying any attention to my cycle. And then of course when a few weeks later I realized I hadn't gotten my period in a while and decided to take a test there were two lines. I think I stared at the test in shock for a good five minutes before even showing Mike. Neither of us believed it until we saw the same two lines there a few days later.  

Okay so just three short weeks after Professor Mike embarks upon his career as a professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry, baby G #3 will be making his or her appearance. We're all really excited. And pretending to be pregnant is now Carina and Aurelia's favorite game.

I'm pregnant like Mommy!

The next few months are going to be crazy. We'll be flying down to Charleston soon to look at homes and provided all goes as planned we should be moving in early July. Then comes Mike's job and baby #3.

So far, this pregnancy has been really different from my two previous pregnancies. With Carina and Aurelia, I only ever had some light nausea. Now I feel nauseated almost all the time and have become well acquainted with the toilet :(  And since the girls no longer nap, there is no chance for me to rest during the day.

More to come soon...that is, if I can stay awake at night long enough to write another blog post ;)

Pregnancy; you're drunk

Let me preface this by stating that I am not currently pregnant. I knew you'd ask, so better to put it all out there.

This post isn't about the strange and unfortunate ailments with which you are afflicted during pregnancy. Nor did I write it to lament the pain of labor or the miseries of that post-partum hot mess phase.

No. I want to discuss the freakish and frustrating side effects of pregnancy that we still have to deal with even as we approach the one year anniversary of its conclusion.

If you have been lucky enough to not experience any of the below? Then you won the pregnancy lottery and I don't want to hear about it ;)

1. Unceasing hair loss

Just when you think it isn't possible to lose any more hair, you find gobs of it surrounding the shower drain or on your hairbrush. Or even worse...sticking out of the baby's diaper (how on earth did it get in there?!?) and in between her toes. When will it ever end? Oh that's right; last time it finally ended when I got pregnant again. The cycle begins again.

2. Weird new hair growth

THIS JOKE ISN'T FUNNY. I'm losing my hair, yet at the same time I'm finding new little tufts spring up in unwanted places. All along my hairline I have wispy curlycues popping up on a daily basis. They seem immune to hair spray and escape even the most secure clips. I haven't straightened my hair in a while because when I do they stick straight out. Should I cut them? CRUEL AND UNUSUAL, human body.

One of the random sprouts. And whoa, my forehead is wrinkly.

3. Linea nigra freakshow

The mystical little brown line that showed up early on while I was pregnant with Carina did me the favor of not reappearing this time around until a few weeks before Aurelia was born. For a while I thought it wasn't going to grace me with its presence again. Well, since the line was late in showing up it must think it's okay to hang out for a while. Aurelia is almost 11 Months old and that line is STILL there, just as dark as it was on her birthday. Talk about overstaying your welcome.

Curse you, damned dark line. And? My belly button used to be cute. Le sigh.

4. Bladder control

I still can't cough or sneeze without having to clench like the aridity of my pants depends on it. I get it, when you're pregnant you have something the size of a watermelon putting pressure on your bladder, and all goes awry. But when you shoot out that basketball and things return to normal, why can I not laugh heartily without wetting myself 11 Months later? And this gets worse after each kid, in my experience. Moms of 4+, can you even more without an errant squirt?

I know there's more, but of course I'm forgetting because that absent-minded pregnancy brain that we're plagued with eventually turns into Mommy brain, which is even worse. Lately I've been lucky if I remember to shower more than three times a week... #yuck

1 week Post-Partum update!

The saggy bag of jello is receding!

Me & my littlest

How far along? 1 week after delivery!

Weight gain/loss: 138 lbs. Loss of 9 lbs. Riddle me this: when I got home from the hospital and weighed myself I was only down 6 lbs., yet Aurelia weighed 7 lbs. 3.3 oz. How is this possible?!? :(

Feeling: Almost 100%! I'm pretty much back to my pre-giant-pregnant-belleh activity level and am feeling pretty good in general. *TMI warning* Sharing the following because people have asked: Just a little bit of cramping and light bleeding at this point. After Carina was born, I bled for almost a month. This time around? It has tapered off already. I'm hoping that I'm in the clear! I actually ditched the giant diaper pads and mesh underwear as soon as I got home from the hospital. I have also had very little soreness and no burning. I haven't needed to use the Dermoplast and I retired the peri-bottle a couple days after getting home as well.

Maternity clothes? I am still wearing a few maternity things (including jeans) because they are more comfy. And? It has been a little chilly and all of my Fall clothes are packed away. Must find them this weekend...

Sleep: Most nights Aurelia sleeps for one 4.5-6 hour stretch, and then another 2.5-3.5 hour stretch. So I am definitely not complaining! She cluster feeds for a couple hours before going down for the night, otherwise I'd worry she wasn't getting enough to eat. She gained 3 oz between getting discharged from the hospital and our well visit the next morning (less than 24 hours later)! I'm eager to see how she does at her next appointment on Monday, October 8th.

Breastfeeding: It's going really well. She has difficulty latching every now and then, but it's usually only for a minute or so before she gets it. I experienced just a little initial soreness like last time and some engorgement while my body was trying to regulate to her schedule, but otherwise no complaints here. Other than nighttime, I'm feeding her about every 1.5-2 hours. Sometimes it is even more frequent. I just feed her whenever she wants it ;)

Last time I took a photo of the sad saggy belly at 5 days post-partum, so naturally I had to take one this time to compare. It's really amazing how quickly it can recede - the photos above were taken just two days after the one on the right, below.

5 days post-partum with Carina (on 1/2/11) and Aurelia (on 9/28/12)

5 Fun Things About Post-Partum Recovery - Guest Post

Hi y'all! I'm Sarah from It's a Vol, wife to Christopher and toddler wrangling, coffee drinking, cloth diapering Mississippi Hippie mom to our girl Evie. I can't craft to save my life, but I bake a mean German Chocolate Cake. I am a sucker for tween music, my daughter's smile and the perfect glass of sweet tea. Stop by and say hi, y'all.  

  You can find us on FACEBOOK * TWITTER * PINTEREST * INSTAGRAM    

Since I am filling in for Melissa while she, Mike, Carina and Aurelia adjust to their new family and because frankly, all this talk of adorable squishy babies is giving me a case of the baby sniffles (not baby fever mind you, just the sniffles) I thought I'd give you and myself a little reminder about the truth of those post-partum days and perhaps provide me some much needed a little birth control. 

1) Jumping right in, let's talk about the massive amounts of blood that ooze out of your lady bits. Remember walking around with a pad the size of a Buick in your sexy mesh granny panties? I do. It was fun, right?

2) Whether you are having a vaginal birth, a c-section or an ear birth (just kidding -- you can't give birth out of your ear) something somewhere is getting shredded and it's gonna need to heal. And it's gonna hurt.

3) Moving right a long we've got the oh so lovely uber flabby, still stretched out three day post-partum belly. J-E-LLO. It's ALIVE!

4) The hormones, oh the hormones. I am convinced that Robert Louis Stevenson wrote the Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde after a particularly unpleasant encounter with a sleep deprived six day post-partum momma.

5) Poop. After squeezing a watermelon sized object through a roughly 10 cm hole or having a six inch incision made in your lower abdomen to remove said watermelon sized object the doctors would like you to put enormous pressure on your bashed up girly parts or gashed open abdomen in an effort to produce a number 2. I don't think I need to elaborate here, ladies.

What "fun things" do you remember about your post-partum recovery? If you are expecting, what are you most looking forward to?

Thanks for the reminder Sarah - LOL!

Aurelia's Birth Story

When I wrote my due date update post on Sunday, September 23rd - little did I know that sharp abdominal pains would begin just a few minutes later. They didn't feel anything like contractions, so I wasn't sure what to make of them. They became more frequent, and then contractions started as well. While they were really painful, there wasn't a pattern and they weren't time-able at all. I just wasn't sure what to do so I called my OB and she suggested I go to L&D to get checked out anyway; the sharp pains concerned her.

We made it to the hospital around 2 PM and the monitors showed that I was having contractions every 4-6 minutes and Aurelia's heart rate was elevated. My OB suspected I might be dehydrated so she gave me IV fluids in the hopes that baby's heart rate would go down. Then just a few minutes later I started throwing up. After about an hour Aurelia's heart rate was still high and I was still having sharp pains and nausea so despite my only being 2 cm dilated at the time, she decided to admit me.

They broke my water shortly thereafter and contractions began to pick up. Soon they were only 2 minutes apart but I was still only 2-3 cm dilated. After a few painful stabs and a half hour of trial and error they finally placed the epidural successfully around 7:30 PM and I was feeling great! I caught some of the Patriots game while waiting to progress ;)

Last picture with the bump!

At 8:30 I was at 5 cm and by 10:30 I was at 9 cm. It was really starting to hurt again, so I had the nurse relieve my bladder in an effort to get things going and immediately afterwards I felt the urge to push. She called the OB back to the room and she checked and said I was ready to go. With Carina, for all 4 hours of pushing I felt no pain. This time? I literally felt like everything was going to bust open. I even asked Mike not to watch at one point because I didn't want to see the look on his face when all of my lady parts tore apart. Luckily, this only lasted for 5 minutes. ONLY 5 MINUTES OF PUSHING. And I didn't tear at all. I feel like I hit the labor and delivery jackpot this time around.

Aurelia emerged at 11:01 PM with her hand up at her face, waving to the world. They put her on my chest and I couldn't believe how much she looked like Carina. She weighed 7 lbs. 3.3 oz. and measured 20 inches long.

Oh hai!

Nursing for the first time

Recovery has been a breeze, relatively speaking. Since the epidural had mostly worn off, I was able to walk and move around just fine afterwards. Bleeding and cramping has been minimal. You know those awesome uterine massages the nurses and OB do? They didn't hurt at all! I couldn't believe this, as they hurt worse than anything else last time. There is barely any pain or soreness down below; I haven't even needed to use Dermoplast. Honestly it is almost as if I didn't just push 7 lbs. out of my vagina - I can't even believe it. Breastfeeding is going great as well. I feel so lucky and blessed to have such a positive experience and a healthy, beautiful baby girl.

Our first photo as a family of 4!

As I took this he said, "I'm the richest guy in the world"

Someone doesn't like her pretty dress

Tired Mommy & baby

Aurelia Ellen - September 23rd 2012

More photos and details about how things are going as soon as I can find some time! ;)

Things I Actually Say: LABOR EDITION - Toddle Along Tuesday

No joke, about 5 minutes after I published my due date bumpdate yesterday, contractions started. 12 hours later, at 11:01 PM, Aurelia was born weighing in at 7 lbs 3.3 oz & 20 inches long. Birth story and more details to come once I have rested! For now, will this cute squishy and my during-labor-ridiculousness satisfy you?

Things I Actually Say During Labor

*TMI warning*

It feels like I'm going to poop everywhere

I didn't tear? VAGINA OF STEEL!

Gas!! YES!

Looks like putting on the cute underwear worked! {will explain this one later}

HOLY CRAP I FEEL EVERYTHING!

Good thing this wasn't you! - to Mike, who has a rather hairy back, as the Anesthesiologist struggled to peel all the tape off my back while taking out the epidural catheter


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This week's Toddle Along Tuesday co-host is Kat from Living Like the Kings and the topic is Things I Actually Say! Tell us some of the crazy and/or ridiculous things that have come out of your mouth lately. Here are some of my favorite non-labor related ones. There are no rules here, except that you link up a relevant post (old or new) rather than your whole blog (or business, #comeonnow).



Next week's topic is favorite toddler toys! I've started Carina's Christmas list and would love to see what your little ones are currently enjoying. If your baby isn't quite a toddler yet, feel free to share a baby toy.

If you like advance notice for TAT, check out the bottom right of my blog - topics for the next couple months are listed. Would you like to submit a topic idea and/or volunteer to co-host one week? E-mail me!

Pregnant Problems: Exhibit I

Guess what, folks? These pregnant problems that I have enjoyed sharing with you so much over the last month will be ending very soon! As you read this I may or may not be in the hospital, awaiting the arrival of Aurelia...


In my opinion, this is one of the strangest mysteries of pregnancy.

Laugh at me some more ----> previous pregnant problems


P.S. No I'm not that crazy person who blogs from the hospital; I prepared this ahead of time for the occasion ;)

P.P.S. I feel really lame asking right now given the circumstances, but Top Baby Blogs just had its quarterly reset! Could you pretty please click the banner below and then the owl to the left? I'd appreciate it so so much. I hung on at #5 this whole time thanks to you!

Due date!

Here I am, 40 weeks pregnant. No baby, or even sign of baby yet. I guess she is content to be fashionably late to the party.

Me and my girls

How far along? 40 weeks. DUE DATE!

Weight gain/loss: 147 lbs. Total gain of 29 lbs. so far.

Feeling: Getting uncomfortable. Not miserable yet, but definitely ready to have this baby.

Maternity clothes? Wearing my favorite dress from Seraphine today :)

Sleep: I'm just going to answer "very little".

Food cravings: Fudge and chocolate chip cookies. I made both this week, but sadly messed up the cookies last night when I used a 1/2 cup measure instead of a cup for the sugar and brown sugar. Pregnancy brain fail.

Movement? Not nearly as often. She must have no space to spare in there.

What I miss? Alcohol. I hate to admit it, but I do. I have a big bottle of Bacardi waiting for me when we get home from the hospital.

Best moment this week: Carina has been extra snuggly this week. She'll randomly jump into my lap and say "Mommy hug!" or come in for a kiss. It's so sweet. I wonder if she knows what's up?

What I'm looking forward to: Meeting her, of course! I'm starting to get a little impatient.

Next Appointment: Tuesday, September 25th at 40 weeks 2 days. At my last appointment, I wasn't dilated at all, and 60% effaced. My OB doesn't induce for postdates until 41.5-42 weeks. Hopefully baby will come on her own well before then.

Milestones: I hit my due date!


I never hit 40 weeks with Carina, but somehow I feel like I looked bigger in my 38 week photo with her than I do today. What do you think?

Check out the cute babies & bellies linked up with my 37 week bumpdate!

Pregnant Problems: Exhibit H

Before you read this one, I'm going to go hide in a corner.

Laugh at me even more ---> previous pregnant problems

Birth Plan: Take 2

While preparing for Carina's birth, Mike and I crafted a list of preferences that I referred to as our birth wish list. I didn't call it our birth plan because I am one of those people who freaks out a lot just a bit when things don't go according to plan. Wish list sounded a little less set-in-stone. I know it's just semantics, but hey, that MATTERS to crazies like me.

Our Birth "Wish List" for Carina

• I will be using Hypnobirthing relaxation techniques. If I am unresponsive, do not worry; please direct questions to Dad.

• I prefer not to have my membranes stripped or water broken. Please obtain my permission before doing either.

• I would prefer intermittent (as opposed to continuous) fetal monitoring.

• I would prefer a heparin or saline lock as opposed to a Continuous IV (if necessary).

• Please do not offer me any pain medication. I know it is available to me, and will ask if I want it.

• As long as the baby and I are healthy, I prefer to have no time limits on pushing.

• I would like to try to push instinctively rather than on command, and in various positions.

• I would like to avoid an episiotomy unless absolutely medically necessary; perineal massage and warm compresses would be preferable.

• We would like to delay cord clamping until the cord stops pulsing. Dad would like to cut the cord when the time comes.

• I appreciate your patience in allowing my placenta to detach naturally.

• Dad would like to be present for any and all procedures performed on baby, and we would like to delay all non-urgent procedures until both of us have had time to bond with baby.

Our 1st family photo (yes I know I have no shirt on, but you can't see anything) ;)

A few months after Carina was born I reflected on our birth plan and wrote about how, for the most part, I felt like a complete failure due to the fact that most of my preferences went down the tubes. I knew it shouldn't matter, but somehow I still found myself feeling like I could have {and should have} done things differently.

Now that I'm older and wiser (ha!) I realize how much {unnecessary} pressure I was putting on myself. I think I felt like I had something to prove...but to whom? Myself? Everyone around me? Looking back, I don't even know. So...this time around?

Our Birth "Wish List" for Aurelia

• Get this baby out safely

Everything else? We'll just take it as it comes. I meant to listen to the Hypnobabies tracks again, because they really did help me to approach labor without fear and relax me, but I've just been too lazy busy.

This almost makes me feel a little irresponsible. I put so much time and effort into preparing {mentally and physically} for Carina's arrival. Are we doing Aurelia a disservice by completely going with the flow this time around? Or - am I just protecting myself from the feelings of failure that plagued me last time?


Did/do you have a birth plan? What are your thoughts on them?

No baby yet! 39 week bumpdate

If you follow me on Twitter or Facebook, you might know that I had some contractions on Friday night and for a little while I thought they were the real deal. Nope - just a tease. Before this happened, I was perfectly content in waiting for my due date for baby girl to come, but now I'm finding myself getting impatient!

How far along? 39 weeks

Weight gain/loss: 146 lbs. Total gain of 28 lbs. so far. I gained 35 lbs. last time.

Feeling: Surprisingly energetic! I've been on a tear trying to clean and organize around the house. Yep, nesting is in full effect. It is a little hard, though, when you're dealing with uncomfortable contractions all the while ;)

Maternity clothes? I feel like this is a rhetorical question at this point.

Sleep: Other than a little bit of restless legs and getting up 3+ times a night to pee, I am getting some quality sleep. I've also been able to fall asleep earlier than midnight almost every night this past week!

Food cravings: Olive Garden. We were going to go on Friday until the contractions started. To satisfy my craving I made Olive Garden copycat breadsticks last night and they were absolutely amazing. I'll have to blog the recipe.

Movement? During the contractions on Friday and since, she has been moving like CRAZY. It's almost constant.

What I miss? You'd think by now I'd be used to have such an enormous belleh, but somehow I'm still clumsy and end up bumping it into everything! So? I miss being able to walk around worry-free, rather than treating our home like an obstacle course.

Best moment this week: Getting the Pack n Play and changing station set up in our room. Just like old times.

What I'm looking forward to: Holding her for the first time.

Next Appointment: Wednesday, September 19th at 39.5 weeks. I'll let my OB check my progress for the 1st time, I think.

Milestones: I am the most pregnant I've ever been! Just for fun - does anyone have a guess as to when the baby will arrive?


I never hit 39 weeks with Carina, so this is uncharted pregnancy territory for me. Last time, I did do a "what would have been 39 weeks" post with an awesome post-partum pic. Oh the saggy bag of jello... ;)

Pregnant Problems: Exhibit G

The sciatica has been much worse this time around. Starting earlier, and feeling stabbier...

Has anyone else fallen victim to this? I wrote about it last time, too. Please ignore Mike's comment on the post ;)

More pregnant problems

The most pregnant I've ever been & a ridiculous PSA

Here I am, 38 weeks and 3 days and no baby yet. Carina was born at this gestational age after it was discovered that I had a leak, potentially caused by my less-than-agile cat falling from great heights. We'll never know if kitty was the culprit, but I am happy to report that there are no loft railings in our current place; so that isn't a worry this time around.

If you'd like to reminisce:

One little PSA for 1st time Moms-to-be or VBAC Moms:
With Carina, I spent over an hour pushing wrong. You might be asking, "what do you mean wrong?" I certainly asked the nurse that as I was huffing and puffing on the hospital bed. Given that the baby was in my vagina, I figured I should push with my vaginal muscles. Wouldn't that seem to make sense?

Nope. Wrong. The nurse rather matter-of-factly instructed that I needed to push like I had to take a huge dump. So, I switched gears and and started to push like I was trying to squeeze out the biggest turd of my life and hey, what do you know? I began to make progress.

So, Mommas-to-be out there, push out that poop baby when the time comes. And I promise you that no one cares if you actually drop a deuce in the process, so don't stress about it.


At what age of gestation did your babies arrive? And did anyone else push "wrong"? I can't believe how many other Moms have told me that they did, too.

Maternity photos in Central Park

While at BlogHer in New York City last month, I met up with my friend Staci of Staci Intriligator Photography for a few quick maternity photos! We didn't have a whole lot of time since my schedule was so booked, but we were able to get some great shots of me in Central Park. Unfortunately it was really humid and I couldn't get my hair to do anything but frizz...despite that, I think I still look pretty cute :)

I think I definitely made the right decision with the dress! I love the way it looks in the photos. Thanks again for your help in choosing my outfit and to Séraphine Maternity for the beautiful dress! And pssst...a little birdie told me that you should still be able to get 25% off of your Séraphine order with promo code GGU25 ;)

If I had to choose, my favorites are the first and last. What do you think? Thanks again to Staci!

Pregnant Problems: Exhibit F

I am clearly no stranger to the sniss.

For more birth control (or to commiserate), see my previous pregnant problems ;)

38 week bumpdate!

How far along? 38 weeks

Weight gain/loss: Still 145 lbs. Total gain of 27 lbs. so far, which is 7 lbs. less than I was with Carina at this point.

Feeling: Okay, actually. Sure I'm tired and don't feel like moving from the couch much, but other than the little scare last week I've been doing just fine.

Maternity clothes? Most of my tops are at that weird tenting stage, which isn't particularly attractive. Since it's still so warm out, I'm mostly living in dresses or tank tops and gym shorts. To be truthful, though? I'd much rather hang out with the bump out. So much more comfortable...

Sleep: Better! I think I'm so exhausted that it has managed to overpower my insomnia.

Food cravings: Raisin Bran with milk, and CHOCOLATE*. Can't get much more random than that! Carina loves the raisins, too. She's always hawking my cereal.

Movement? I'm not feeling much other than a few rolls here and there. Except last week when Carina accidentally punched my stomach - baby girl fought back! Unfortunately that wasn't so pleasant for me. I can't believe she's still in utero and they're already fighting ;)

What I miss? Doing anything at all with ease. Giving her a bath, emptying the dishwasher, doing laundry, everything! is just such a chore at this point. I think it takes me at least twice as long than it did when I wasn't enormous.

Best moment this week: Finding out that baby and I were just fine at L&D. I was really worried that I was going to have to be induced again...and I wasn't ready yet!

What I'm looking forward to: Meeting her! If she's anything like Carina, she could be here in just a couple days. Eeek!

Next Appointment: Friday, September 14th at almost 39 weeks.

Milestones: Only two weeks until my due date!

I was 38 weeks with Carina on Christmas Day back in 2010. At the time, I had no idea it would be my last bump pic! Carina was born just 3 days later. Looking at the photo, wow, I looked freakishly huge. I don't think I look as big this time!

If you'd like to follow along with everyone else's bump and baby updates from last week, check them out here, and feel free to link up yours, too.


*Speaking of chocolate, because I'm so obsessed with it right now, I'm hosting a Velata Chocolate Fondue party with my friend Sandy! Check out my Velata review from a few months back if you're interested!