The Name Game

I believe my current most asked question is "Have you picked a name?" Tom and I both are constantly asked this question, whether from our loving parents or random strangers. My usual response ranges from a simple "No" to "We've thought of some, but we haven't picked" This last response inevitably leads to a follow up question of "What are you thinking of?" To which I am forced to respond, "It's a secret!" Tom and I made the decision early in my pregnancy that 1) we were not going to choose a name until the baby was born, and 2) that our choices were going to be secret until that time. Now very early (like 3-4 months ago) we may have spilled the beans to close friends or family, but we are seriously trying to keep our mouths shut at this point. This is for a variety of reasons, but mostly because it was a decision we wanted to make ourselves and since we found out the sex, we wanted to have a surprise for everyone at the delivery room.

Because this question continues to be asked, I wanted to make a blanket statement that we truly are keeping it a secret and no, we will not tell you - no, not even one name! Most people have been very respectful of this, but I feel really bad when someone is overly curious (whether it is a close relative or not) and continues to ask, while I basically have to repeat "I'm not telling," although I do try to be more polite than that. This is not because we don't like you, but just because for now, it is our secret.

I will say we have narrowed down our choices to approximately 5-6 names first names and 3-4 middle names, but there is no clear cut winner, and honestly, there probably won't be until she arrives. What if we had picked out Katherine and she comes out looking like a Madison (neither of which are on our list by the way)? So in summary, please be respectful of our decision and do not be offended when we will not tell you our choices. Thanks everyone!

Cute Story and Updates

So Sunday at church, this older gentleman who was sitting behind me tapped me on the shoulder and asked if I was having a girl. I said yes actually I am, and he went on to explain that he can always tell if someone is having a girl because they don't look pregnant from behind. So apparently I only look pregnant from the front and sides :) I'm not sure how true that is, but I thought it was funny.

On another note, we will hopefully be finishing our nursery purchases in the next week or so. The dresser we wanted was out of stock, so we had to wait to buy it. Also, baby shower will probably be the 1st weekend in January, although I'm not sure which day. Let me know if Saturday or Sunday is better for anyone in particular and I will pass the information along to my planning party.

Shower Update

I have some shower news. I was just recently informed by my mother-in-law that she is too busy at work to get a shower together for Thanksgiving, so the date is being pushed back. It will probably be after Christmas due to the hectic holiday schedules of myself as well as everyone else. I have been getting questions about the shower, so I wanted to make sure we were all on the same page!

I Passed :)

Just wanted to let everyone know I passed the dreaded 3 hour glucose test - yippee!!! I am so excited and thankful to not have the added complication of gestational diabetes. Also, I am feeling much better from my bought with the stomach virus. Hope everyone is well!! Thank you for all the thoughts and prayers :)

Stomach virus...blah

Well this weekend is just not the best. Friday I had my 3 hours of yuck as I posted about before, and Saturday I wound up with the GI virus that's going around. Thankfully, I didn't get sick till the evening, but Tom and I were at the Colerain-Elder game at Nippert Stadium, and we had to leave early because I wasn't feeling well. Then I had to make him pull the car over on the way home so I could throw up....then I proceeded to throw up multiple times at home all night as well. Sorry for the discussion, but that's what happened! I am feeling much better and I have been able to keep Sprite, crackers, applesauce, and a small baked potato down today. Hopefully I will continue to feel better tomorrow.

I do want to brag on my husband a little because he takes such good care of me. He went out and bought me Sprite and crackers, rubbed my head and back, and generally has just been fantastic. I could not ask for a better friend and partner in life! Thanks honey!

Overalls or Dress

I went shopping yesterday! Kohl's is having a huge sale, and I had to get some new clothing items. Everything on me just continues to grow!! So as I was walking, I saw that baby clothes were also on sale, so of course I had to peruse them. I found 2 adorable possibilities for her coming home outfit. I saw the overalls first and thought they were really cute, but then I wondered if that would be okay with the umbilical cord. Then I saw the dress, but thought her legs would be cold, and I actually called my mom to see if they make baby tights, which apparently they do, but are hard to find because I haven't seen any at the stores I frequent. SO I'm taking a vote: which outfit do you like? Or would you keep looking?

3 hours of yuck

I had my glucose test this morning. It wasn't the most pleasant experience. The stuff I had to drink this time was double the sugar, so it tasted like fruit punch on steroids. And I had to fast before hand so I had a sugar rush going which gave me a stomachache and headache for about an hour, then my blood sugar crashed so I was exhausted. I also had to have my blood drawn 4 separate times. My arms are a little sore, but it wasn't the end of the world. Hopefully this one will come out clear, but my family medical history is against me (thanks, Mom...kidding). I also apparently had really high levels on the first test. Oh well. We'll see what happens Monday. I should get my results back then. Nothing else new to report as yet. Hope everyone is well!!

Enjoy the new layout!

As I'm getting better at this blogging thing, I realized there are tons of fun blogging templates out there. So I decided to spice up the blog! Just bear with me as I change some things around. It may take a few days to get it all set like I want!

PS: This layout came from http://www.giselejaquenod.com.ar/blog/

I Failed the Glucose Test!

For anyone who is familiar with pregnancy, there is a condition called gestational diabetes, which means that the mother develops diabetes during her pregnancy only. Pregnant women 25 or older are routinely screened for this problem by undergoing a 1 hour glucose tolerance test. Basically, you have to drink a special bottle of "juice" (mine was fruit punch - not too bad actually), and then wait an hour at the doctor's office until they draw your blood to test the glucose levels. I took this test Friday, and then got a call from my OB office this afternoon letting me know that I failed it. My glucose levels were higher than they should be. However, not to be alarmed, the next step is a 3 hour fasting glucose test. This one involves fasting from midnight the night before, going to the doctor's to drink the juice, staying at the doctor's for 3 hours, and then getting my blood drawn. Not the end of the world, but it's kind of shooting this Friday morning in the foot. If anyone is bored in the early hours, you can come hang out with me at the Western Hills office of Seven Hills Women's Health Center!! I'll be there from 8:45 to noon!!!

Nursery Pictures

I was finally able to get the nursery cleaned out this week! Yeah! Because the nursery used to be the office, we had a rather large desk we had to find a place for. It found a new home in my sister's apartment :) So this is the first picture of my current favorite thing in the room - the sea horse lamp!

It looks pretty cool lit up - it has a nice soft light which will be great for all those late night trips to the nursery. Okay, picture #2.

As you can see, we still only have a crib and our most recent addition - the chair. Hopefully, tomorrow we are going to go on a shopping trip for the dresser, table, and a crib mattress. That way our child will have a place to sleep and to put her clothes :) Oh, and we are going to trim the curtains. I just haven't done that yet. All right, well if we get more things together, I'll post some more pictures!

Registries and such

As we are getting closer to the time of baby showers, Christmas, and gifts, I wanted to point out a few things on the blog. I have links to our registries listed on the left, if you have not already discovered that. I recently added a registry at Amazon for some of the items which cannot be found at Target or Babies R Us. These are mostly things like diaper covers, wet bags, soaps, etc. for cloth diapering, and a few products that are online only at specialty stores. It is impossible to find cloth diapering supplies in stores; it is almost a complete online business. There is one store in Cincinnati called Park and Vine which carries some things, but they are downtown, so it's not a place you can stop in conveniently. Anyway, I am rambling. Sorry:)

Also, Popes and everyone else on Tom's side...expect a shower invite soon. I believe it is being planned close to Thanksgiving. My mom will also be throwing a shower sometime in December or early January, but we haven't pinpointed a date yet. That shower will be my side of the family and friends, so you all have a while to wait :)

And the answer is...

Cloth. Yes, I can't believe we are committing to this, but Tom and I have decided to go ahead and try the cloth route. Believe me, a lot of research went into this!! There is a diaper service here in Cincinnati called Good Natured Baby (http://www.goodnaturedbaby.com), and it will be about the same cost, if not cheaper than disposables. By the way, thanks to Ashley for recommending them! We are hoping this will be a good compromise for us. If it turns out to be too much we will look for other options, but this is what is looking like the right course for us. I think the main reasons we decided to do this is to reduce our environmental impact and for the health of our baby. It will definitely be less convenient, but that's okay. We are willing to make the sacrifice if it is better for everybody.