Pregnancy Fashion

Yay me, I have thus far avoided maternity clothes!  Today marks the 20th week of baby making, which is hopefully half way.  The only unfortunate thing about avoiding maternity clothes is that it takes me forever to get dressed.  Every morning I have a huge pile of clothes on the bed of discarded items that used to be my favorites but now I loathe.  It is a constant search for things that make my belly look cute and round and contained to my belly area, not a gigantic full body bloating that some outfits seem to suggest.  Let's explore!  

This is my Valentine's Day outfit.  I tried on at least 5 dresses until I resigned that even if Jason could zip it up, my boobs definitely wanted out and appear to be trying to escape.  Then it took probably 5 skirts before I admitted that no, there is no skirt without an elastic waistband in this closet that will zip, even if I try and sling it really low.  This is what we came up with, ONE skirt in the closet that works, along with a cardigan that has NO CHANCE of buttoning.  

Proof that pregnancy is sexy!  Now I'm going to be to blame for all those teen pregnancies because who wouldn't want to look just like this?  Don't hate! as my students say. 

Since it takes so long for me to find a decent outfit, I tend to wear the same ones every week.  The black hopeless cardigan makes another appearance.  This has been one of my staple sweaters, but after seeing this picture I don't think it will be anymore.  

I would wear this outfit every single day if I could.  Cardigan buttons, belly looks round and cute but does not seem to spread to other body parts.  I just try and remember which day of the week I wore it last so that the same students don't see it two weeks in a row.  Here I am wearing one of three pairs of pants I own that I can hike low enough below my belly to wear.  My khakis are getting pretty tight and uncomfortable, so it is pretty much just these and a pair of black pants from The Gap that were a size too big when I bought them.  These jeans are stretchy too, so they have been flexible with my body changes.  I have to do a lot more laundry though!  

If ANTM is looking for America's Next Top Pregnant Model, I think I'm ready! 

P.S. Jason thinks these pictures are cheating, especially the last two which are from before Valentine's day, because as he says my belly grows daily! 

Baby Update!

This is a special blog post today brought to you by Rebecca's guest blogger, Jason.  We went to the doctor on Friday and had an ultrasound, which was pretty awesome, but I'll let you be the judge.  Check out the video below!  BTW - spoiler alert: if you're into surprises, you will find out if we're having a boy or girl in this video.


I was really surprised with how cool this ultrasound was.  The little video doesn't really do justice to the moment of seeing this little kid swimming around in there for the first time.
Thanks Mike for adding the intro, music, and uploading the video to youtube for us today!

Rebecca wanted me to include this picture of her belly. You can see it's hard for her to get all her layers of clothes out of the way because it's ridiculously cold here right now. I think today's high was supposed to be 1 degree.

The ultrasound tech thought that Rebecca's due date was really more like July 18th, but our doctor didn't think one week was enough of a difference to change her actual due date.

That's all for now. Think warm thoughts for us...

Jason's Crowning Weekend Achievement

I guess I DO have time for a quick blog post this week!  Jason has been busy this weekend finishing up the trim for our cabinetry.  

Hurray, all the crown molding is finished!  We've lived with it unfinished for almost 10 months, so it was about time we finished it!  Here is a before, in case you don't remember.

We hired someone who actually knows how to do this to put up the crown molding back in April, but we were one piece short so he couldn't finish.  Jason thought he ordered the extra piece a long time ago, but when we decided to finally tackle this project last weekend it was nowhere to be found, so this week he ordered the extra piece and it arrived on Friday.  To have the guy come back and set up his fancy tools would have cost $150, plus the labor, so Jason decided to try it himself.  Of course, we had to buy a new blade for his saw to make these kind of cuts.  Every project warrants a new tool purchase!   Since Jason could see how the guy did it, he was able to figure out how to do it himself.  He also finished trim pieces along the baseboards.  He was really nervous about doing this project, but he is super proud of himself and so am I!  

Since we lugged the air compressor upstairs, Jason also took the opportunity to repair some facing and door frame trim.  He is so productive! 

Here are the back splash tile choices I've collected.  I originally thought I'd like a glass mosaic tile that is so trendy right now, but it looked pretty busy with the countertop and it is also expensive.  We thought something more classic like a subway tile would look better.  We've decided on the dark brown one in the middle against the wall.  The kitchen is nearing completion!  We have this tile project, and we have this strange situation.  

I really wouldn't mind this pipe coming out of the wall at all if there wasn't a gaping hole behind it.  I'm wondering if we could just fill it in with joint compound a million times, but if that doesn't work we'll have a big gooey mess to paint over and no solution.  Mike suggested building a little shelf or something to hide it, and that might work well.

We're hoping to get these last projects finished up before the baby comes, because who knows when we'll have time to do them then? 

Bliss in the Bedroom at Last

We have been living without night stands in our bedroom ever since we moved upstairs.  We do have perfectly good night stands in our guest room, but I don't like them anymore.  Well, they don't go with my romantic/relaxing vision of our bedroom decor.  I made the decision that I'd rather live without night stands than with night stands I don't like.  Jason has been unhappy about this decision because he doesn't really care what the night stands look like, but he would like to have one because he sleeps on the far side of the room.  Usually, I make it into bed first, and he has has to turn off the light and stumble around the bed in the dark, since without end tables, we are also without bedside lamps.  I acknowledge this is totally unfair to Jason, and I've been looking for suitable replacements.  Of course, I want something specific, something a bit more slight since our bedroom is pretty small as it is.  Everything I find that I like is at least $200 apiece, and I'm way too cheap to spend that much on bedroom furniture.  There are almost no night stands on craigslist either, so this has been a long search.  So it was pretty exciting when I saw two MATCHING (that is another prerequisite of said new night stands) night stands that I did NOT hate!  I called to Jason yesterday from the office about them, and he was really excited before he even saw them.  "How much are they?  $30 for both?  Let's go get them!"  He insisted we drive downtown on Sunday, even though not all the roads had been plowed yet after Saturday's big dump, because he was that excited.  

 Pretty simple I know, but we're both happy now and that is all that matters!  Not bad for $30, don't you think? Now I need to find lamp shades for these lamps, since I no longer like these either!  I suppose I can live with them for a while...

That lump in the bed is my new body pillow, and I LOVE it!  I don't know how to make the bed with it, however.  It looks like someone is sleeping under there, or maybe I'm hiding a pile of dirty clothes.  Jason loves it too, and sometimes steals it from me while we sleep.  I think he should get his own!  I don't think you have to be pregnant to enjoy the wonders of sleep with a full body pillow. 

I have other things I'd like to blog about, but I know it will be a couple of weeks most likely before I blog again.  This week, there is scheduling difficulties at the store, which will mean many hours of overtime for us both, and next week we are both playing in the pit of a college musical.  Free time should be non existent. 

A Ball in Chicago

Jon and Roberta visited us for Thanksgiving and took us on a wonderful trip to Chicago!  First, we had the official Thanksgiving dinner at our house.

We thought it would be fun to tell them our big news in person, so we painfully waited until they arrived.  In my family, the tradition is to give the future Grandfather a bottle of Old Grand-dad Whiskey.  We continued the tradition by giving a bottle to Jon for his birthday, which is conveniently in November.  The surprise on their faces was priceless and I'm glad we had someone to tell in person! 

Tradition is tasty.  So I'm told, I couldn't have any :(

Then we drove to Chicago together!  What a great skyline!  Don't let those peaceful blue skies fool you, it was bitterly cold that weekend.  

Here we are standing in line for the Shedd Aquarium.  Apparently, everyone else thinks that Thanksgiving weekend is a good time to go sightseeing also!  I'm not sure how long we waited in line, but it seemed like quite a long time.  

When we finally made it inside, there were people everywhere, swarming every display.  A few times, I took my gaze upward to admire the beautiful building.  Even the light fixtures reminded me of sea creatures! 

We really enjoyed the Aquarium, but all the walking around really wore me out.  I've had a pretty easy 1st trimester I think, but I was tired quite easily.  Because of it, I didn't enjoy the Symphony concert that night as much as I would have liked.  I thought the music was excellent, but it is hard to concentrate when you are fighting sleep!  In anticipation of another potentially draining day, I only spent an hour at the Chicago Art Museum and spent the rest of the day resting in the hotel room while Jon and Roberta traipsed around town.  I did NOT want to miss a thing at the Lyric Opera, and it was worth it!  

It was a fabulous opera, and I'm so glad we were able to make a great memory together enjoying the finer things in life!

No More Unsightly Holes Part II

Whew!  We made it through another Christmas successfully.  If you've been wondering where I have been, I apologize.  The holidays can seriously stress me out, and I needed to focus my efforts on survival.  With our new found free time, we decided to start thinking about house projects again.  

This hole has existed in our otherwise fully functioning kitchen for going on 10 months now.  As far as I know, we have not lost anything down there! 

Jason tackles the hole with some hardie board while George Costanza looks on.  Jason bought that tv with the Christmas money from his uncle.  Thanks Lee!  

And tada!  This hardie board is certainly hardy.  When we FINALLY make a decision and pick some tile for the backsplash, the tile can go directly on this stuff.  In the meantime, we do not have to worry about losing a measuring cup to the black abyss of DIY remodel living. 

But the REAL reason why I have been neglecting my blogging is that I'm PREGNANT!  Anyone who reads this blog most likely already knows that, but it's fun to shout it from the blogosphere mountaintops.  I've basically been too exhausted the last couple months to do much of anything besides dragging myself through the things that I HAVE to do, so blogging and housework have fallen by the wayside a little bit.  Today I'm 12 weeks, so I'm hoping the second trimester will bring some of my enthusiasm back. 

So is this blog going to turn into a baby blog?  Probably, just warning you.  I still plan to make posts about DIY projects and other random things, but who am I kidding, are we really going to have much time for that stuff?  This blog is about the details of our day to day lives (that I choose to share with you all), and this is pretty much the most exciting thing that will be going on with us for a while!  So for my Mom and anyone else who cares, here is a picture of the belly!  

(Clearly I did not put much effort into my appearance today, but it is my day off.)  So there it is, 12 week belly.  I've had TWO people tell me I'm showing already.  That kind of bothers me.  I'm not ready to be fat, not yet!  I want to hold it off as long as I can.  I've definitely gained some weight, but I was hoping I could pull off carefree 20 something a little longer.  Gini and Jason say I'm not showing yet, but I think that is their job to say that.  Honestly though, looking at that picture, it isn't as bad as it feels.  I feel like a huge bloated blimp, and that looks like maybe I wasn't sucking in for this picture.  But I was!

Trying not to OD on Christmas Cheer

Christmas is in full swing and I FINALLY gathered the energy to get my decorations out.  

Yep, this is about it for me.  I have the stockings my mother made, a quilted throw a student made, some elf shaped candles, a cat in a rude pose and a thousand Christmas catalogs.  

 You have to see these stockings close up!  They are so detailed and took my mom forever to make them.  

 This is the first time I've been able to enjoy them upstairs since she made them!  They are definitely my most treasured Christmas item.  

 I really like this wreath because it doesn't really say "Christmas" but more "winter".  (also it has metal stars all over it!)  You see, I'm not really into Christmas.  In fact, usually I detest Christmas so much that I begrudgingly pull out the decorations for the sake of my students only.  What I don't like is the rampant commercialism, the incessant tired old Christmas carols that I have to play a million times at gigs, and the pressure to buy, buy, buy.  I also feel that many of the emotions are contrived and insincere.  But maybe that is just my emotions, I'm coming to wonder!  I usually grumble through the season and hope it will pass quickly, but this year I have decided to try and look at things differently.  I don't WANT to be a scrooge, and I think there are some good things I can find in this season.  I have Netflix so I can easily avoid the commercials.  I no longer work in a department store, so the emotional trauma of the one hour cd of Christmas carols they played back to back ad nauseam is slowly numbing with each passing year.   This year, I'm trying to focus on family and traditions.  

 Unfortunately I don't actually get to see any of my family this Christmas, but I put up a few things that remind me of them.  My grandmother on my mom's side was Swedish, which only makes me 1/4 Swedish, but I still like honoring her and remembering Christmas at her house.  Here I have a Swedish straw Yule Goat and a Dala horse.  The Yule goat is missing some of his beard I think but I've had him for a while.  The reindeer was purchased at Target and isn't Swedish or family oriented in the least but I think it makes a nice trio with the others!  I have some other decorations, but I left them in the box this year partially out of laziness but mostly because a little Christmas goes a long way for me and I don't want to OD.  I am trying to be optimistic here and I'm taking baby steps! 

When we purchased the house it already had these rope lights up, so all we have to do is plug them in.  That's just the right amount of effort for us.  There is a dead spot in the middle of the rope, but we really don't care enough to do anything about it.