The Blackburn Family

I thought I would post a quick update on the house. It is all done, but I haven’t taken any final pictures yet. Casey did take some of Luke working on the hardest part of the house. It scares me just to look at it! That roof it pretty steep. It looks so much better! Now I am all about getting in the yard and getting my flowers going. There is so much to do! I can’t really do much this year so I must rely on my helper. The grass in the front yard continues to piss me off. The backyard is okay, some weeds, some bare spots and some really moist areas, but the front is horrible. No matter what I do it never looks good! Ugh. I am very tempted at this point to hire a service to come out and do it for me. It isn’t as expensive as I thought and we have clearly spent way more trying to do it for the last 3 years. It doesn’t help that our two neighbors on the right have yards that are 100% weeds (seriously) and we are downhill from them so it is a constant battle to keep their weeds away.

In baby news I had my 28 week appointment this week. Nothing much to report. Up one more pound which isn’t too bad! Everything is looking good and his butt was up in my left rib area. So I figure it is his feet in my right ribs all the time. He seems to kick and punch in the same areas so I guess he isn’t moving too much anymore. We also met with our first of 3 pediatricians, but I loved him so I think that we will end up going to him or his partner. He was the perfect doctor for me, so laid back and willing to listen and talk to you. Casey liked him too so we will see how the others are next month.

Oh, I started my knitting class last night and it was insane. It took forever to really understand what we were supposed to be doing, but when I got home and practiced it wasn’t too bad. However, I think to be safe I should go ahead and order a few hats on etsy to have for my infant photos (which there will be a million of so prepare yourselves). It is probably not wise to think I will be making cute baby hats before he arrives.

Some photos of the painting. If you live in the Raleigh area and need work down on your house let us know. We love Luke! He does a great job, very friendly and good prices! He does all types of work.

Spring has arrived here in NC! All the sudden this week the trees started to bloom and flowers are popping up all around. So far my only bulbs to emerge are the tulips. I wouldn’t be surprised if the squirrels got a few of the others. I have been feeling really blah and tired lately. I figured it was just the whole third trimester thing, but then it hit me today…. allergies. The downside to this beautiful weather and flowers. I don’t have terrible allergies, but it gets to my eyes and makes my noise drain. No sneezing or anything. Just the itchy eyes and constant nasal drip which makes me feel tired and makes my neck hurt. So I don’t think the pregnancy is to blame for my recent lack of energy. Although it might not help. I do find I get out of breath a lot faster now.

From what I can tell I have now entered the second trimester. I go back to see the midwives this week which is crazy. I feel like I was just there! So far no swelling and my rings still fit. The acid reflux is much better and still only occurs when I am at work. I blame work. Water aerobics was really fun last week and it was nice getting in the water and not carrying around all this extra weight. When I got out of the pool I felt like I weighed 50 extra pounds! I think it is going to be a fun class and it is nice talking to other pregnant ladies. There are two other girls in their last trimester but most are just starting their second. All have to suffer through the horrible summer heat. I can’t even image being due in August or September! I was hot enough this week when it was 78 and would be miserable in the 110 temps we get in August! Okay, maybe it isn’t 110, but it sure feels like it with the humidity.

So here is a little summary on the second trimester:

Weight gained – Well, up a total of about 23 pounds as of my last appointment so I guess the total for the second trimester is about 15 pounds

Maternity clothes – Yep, all maternity all the time. I started out with my old fat jeans and a few maternity shirts, but by 20 weeks had to give it up. I finally found some Gap jeans that I love and don’t fall down so I wear them all the time. Still hate my Motherhood ones….. I got a bunch of spring stuff this weekend so all I need now is some comfy shoes!

Symptoms – Acid reflux/indigestion, occasional back pain, not much else!

Cravings – Nope, nothing! Okay some days chocolate and anything sweet, but that is not pregnancy related! That is just me all the time. I crave and enjoy the things I did pre-pregnancy – pizza, mexican and anything that is a carb or has sugar in it!

Worst Part – Acid reflux and indigestion!! Yuck and yuck.

Best Part – Finally feeling the little guy move around in there, getting to see my belly bounce around and people finally noticing I am pregnant and not just a bit thick in the middle! I have also enjoyed working on the nursery and buying cute clothes at all the consignment sales. I can’t stop myself! One more next weekend and then a break until later this summer.

In other news we are getting the house painted this week. I will put a few pictures below of the before/in progress. It already looks much better, but isn’t done yet. I also am planning to put in a radiant barrier in the attic. Well, have Casey do it. We are on the fence about what to do with the HVAC systems. We have two and want to replace at least one by the end of the year to get the tax credit. So, do we do them both now, one now or wait to see if either break? Not sure yet what we are going to do, but if we don’t replace them I want to at least clean the ducts. Oh, go ahead and laugh…. I am getting the downstairs carpet cleaned, but that will be once the foster rabbits are at the SPCA. I am sure JD will puke on it the day we get it cleaned!

28 weeks photo

The house before painting (you can see the new color already on the garage)

Back being worked on

Well, the second trimester is coming to an end and I can already feel some of my energy slipping away. The last week I have been so tired in the afternoon to the point that I could take a nap. So far I haven’t actually taken a nap, but I don’t think it will be long! Maybe if I exercise when I get home it will help. I should be able to do a bit more exercising this week. The water aerobics class starts Tuesday so that should be interesting. I guess thanks to this daylight savings crap I can go for a walk in the evening. I am probably the only person that hates daylight savings! I function based on the sun. If it is out I want to be up and if it is down I want to be asleep. I hate driving to work in the dark. Hate it. I am so tired when I get to work and in a terrible mood. Plus I am sure I will be up late tonight since my body is all messed up now. It doesn’t seem like it should be 8:30, I just ate dinner! Tomorrow morning I should be nice and grouchy.

In other pregnancy news my acid reflux is doing much better, but the middle back pain is acting up most days. I think the little guy is pushing on something because I didn’t have a problem for the last few days and then earlier I could feel him shifting around and bam, my back was killing me all the sudden and hasn’t stopped. My pregnancy brain is going strong too. The rabbits had a great time running in the baby room tonight since I forgot to put up the gate. I also forgot to turn on the stove when I was cooking dinner.

We worked on the nursery some this weekend. We got some room darkening shades and put those up. We also put up the valances. It took Casey about 1.5 hours to hang them (2 each). He had to make sure every single part was level and then check it a few times. At least he does it right. I just watched and handed him the tools. I did have to hold the level once and thought my arms were going to fall off while I waited for him to get it just right. It must be perfect. This is why dad will be doing the stencil, but I will have Casey tape them up so they are nice and level. Casey’s parents and sister also came up this weekend with a minivan full of baby stuff including the glider for the nursery! I have been avoiding ordering the bookcase and toy box until I made sure there was room for the chair. There is room so I went to order them today and both are on back order! Figures. I just want it all done, but I guess I will have to wait until the end of April (estimated ship date on the bookcase, no idea on the toy box).

I had my glucose test this week and I passed so no diabetes for me! I really didn’t mind the drink at all. To be honest I kind of liked it! I pretty much only drink water so it was nice having a sweet drink. The only problem was drinking it so fast. It was a bit difficult getting it down quickly since it was so sweet, but I managed. It gave me horrible acid reflux though and I couldn’t do anything about it until after they took the blood and by then it was better. I met with my first midwife and I loved her! We discussed my diet (that was my homework – a food journal) and both agreed my veggies are lacking. She said just put some cheese on them. Well, I can do that! If I had more energy to cook when I got home it wouldn’t be an issue, but I just hate cooking during the week. My weight is looking good. I was only up 2 pounds from my last visit. She said I am on track and she would like me to gain 25-35 pounds. I am feeling bigger now. Still a long way to go when it comes to growing!!

We are most likely going to adjust my due date by a few days. I believe my due date to be 6/13 not 6/9 and she agreed. My last ultrasound put me at 6/12 so looks like I was much closer than the docs! Really, 4 days isn’t a huge deal, but she said it is important if I go into early labor. Since the birth center will not force me to induce I am not as worried about it as I was at the OB’s office. I expected them to pressure me at 41 weeks which really wouldn’t be 41 weeks for me! At least I don’t have to worry about that now. My biggest concern at this point is making sure this little guy ends up head down. That is a c-section for sure so let’s all hope he figures it out when the time comes.

I will post more updates this weekend along with my new picture!

Today I went to yet another consignment sale! I didn’t get as much this time since I really don’t need too many more clothes. There is another one this week so I went through my current stock to see what I really need. I went to today’s sale with a good friend of mine that is also pregnant and due 6 weeks after me. Today I found out if she is having a boy or girl… I won’t say because some of you out there know who I am talking about and she hasn’t told all her friends and family yet so I won’t say yet! I just wish she didn’t live in Charlotte!

The room is slowly coming together. I actually ordered a bunch of stuff last week for the room so I am waiting for all of it to get here. I ordered two prints, a couple baskets and the stencils. So far only the prints are here and they are so cute! Oh and mom found a crib skirt on super sale at Pottery Barn that matches really well with my set. It needs to be hemmed though. Hopefully next weekend we can get the roller shades and put up the curtains. Right now they are just hanging on the crib. I also started working some on the dresser. The drawers need some work and I am not sure yet what to do with them. I also need a way to organize them for tiny clothes so any tips are appreciated.

I have my next appointment this week so I will try to write up a bit later this week. I weighed myself twice yesterday and the first time I was up a pound or so and a few hours later I was up 4! I don’t know which is right, but I am guessing the 4! I did manage to find a pair of jeans that don’t fall down all day so I will probably wear them all the time now. I wouldn’t mind the weather warming up a tad (not too much) so I can get out my flip flops. I also have a few spring tops that I wouldn’t mind wearing for a change. Of course I am sure they will get old pretty quickly too. The acid reflux is better, but still comes and goes. Other than that I have no problems. Still sleeping really well and no pains yet. The sleep is thanks to my snoogle. Best money I have spent so far, but being super cheap I did get it used on Craig’s List. It was so worth it. It is so comfy and JD loves it. Casey actually likes it too! I did add an extra pillow at the end for my legs. I find that I sleep better with my whole leg elevated and not just the knee area. It really helps my hips and lower back. My sweet teeth is now in high gear and I really need to get it in control so I don’t end up with a 10 pound baby! He is sure to come out loving carbs, dairy and sugar because that is pretty much all he gets in there! He won’t have a clue what vegetables taste like and I hate eating meat so he doesn’t get much of that either.

In other news I picked up my newest foster rabbit from the SPCA Saturday. Someone dropped off three rabbits in various containers over the weekend. They just left them at the end of the road at the SPCA. A volunteer saw them on the way out one night and called to let them know there were some animals left outside. Poor little things. So cute. I ended up with the female and she is terrified of people. I am sure she was abused in some way. I haven’t seen one this scared in awhile. We have pretty much left her alone this weekend. We only reach in to give her food, hay and water. We never try to pet her so hopefully she will learn we aren’t here to hurt her. She explores and has a good time until we get too close. JD doesn’t scare her at all, just humans. I am still waiting for the domestic that is running wild too. He/she will be pretty scared of us too if we can catch him.

Here is a picture of JD enjoying my snoogle pillow. He likes to spend his days sleeping on it.

Here is my current belly picture. I added the hands on the belly to help define it a bit since I just kind of look like a blob now. Perhaps I will switch to a lighter shirt, but I like the slimming effect of the black ones!

Only 100 days until my due date! Where has the time gone? I can’t possibly get it all done in time! Does it really matter if I get my photos organized? No, but I really feel like I have to do it. I seem to come up with new projects daily and haven’t finished all the other ones I have started. It is silly, but I just need everything done and organized before he arrives. I suppose this is a completely normal feeling that won’t be going away anytime soon. I have a feeling I will need to get the carpets cleaned in a few months as this is one I hear from a lot of people. I wonder why?

I think I am going to sign up for a prenatal water aerobics class. I have no desire to spend money on a maternity bathing suit or to see myself in one, but I think it will do me good. I need to get in a class to keep myself motivated on my exercising and it will probably feel really nice to get in the water in a few months as the belly grows. I haven’t signed up yet so I guess I could still chicken out. I must remember all the other girls are big and pregnant too. I was doing really good with my exercising, but last week was so busy I didn’t fit much in. This week should be better and then next week is another crazy one with something to do almost every day after work. If only I could have a few more days off work. I could get so much more done!

This weekend we put the crib together (okay, Casey did it alone and did a good job), moved the shelf in the nursery to the rabbit room, cleaned and organized the bunny room (they were not thrilled with us messing in their space) and I spent Saturday in Cary for Rabbit Day! We didn’t win the photo contest this year, but I did win a raffle prize which was awesome. We also had 7 adoptions and applications on a few other bunnies! It was a big success. Then I get an email this morning about 3 more surrendered at the SPCA. It never ends.

Here is this week’s picture. It was very underexposed so I had to really bump it up making the background go really white, but it will do for now. You get the idea. Anyway, the little guy is really moving around a lot more now and changes positions often. Some days really high and some days really low! Casey still hasn’t seen him kicking from the outside even though it happens all the time. He never gets over fast enough to see it. Never falls he stops kicking as soon as Casey comes over.