Introducing...

Our precious girl

Preslie Kay Marie Pino

Born Tuesday, April 2, 2013

at 6:20am

Weighing 7 pounds, 6.9 ounces

19 3/4 inches long

She was born bright-eyed and smiling

She looks a lot like me but has her daddy's pretty eyes

We're trying to grasp our new normal and get to know one another

Kevin is an incredible father

 I'm hoping to post more soon and provide some decent photos from our camera, a little about the Little Squirt (our nickname for her) and enlighten you with her birth story.

 Thank you all for the congrats and love and well wishes. We're so thrilled she's finally here!

xoxo,

Baby Pino: 38 Weeks (and a prayer)

How far along: 38 weeks and 2 days

I wanted to wait until I had my appointment yesterday before I updated. My doctor checked me and I'm not dilated by my cervix is soft, so that's a good thing.

However, when she listened to the baby's heartbeat she said it sounded irregular. So she sent me to get a non-stress test (NST) and I was in there for about an hour and Preslie's heartbeat is definitely irregular. That was the longest hour of my life looking at the monitor and seeing the heartbeat numbers all over the place. From what I can remember the nurse telling me is that it sounds like she's skipping a beat. So...now I go back every three days for a NST until she's born. In the meantime I need to have blood work done to check my thyroid and we should be hearing from the perinatologist any time now to schedule what I think will be an in-depth ultrasound of her heart.

The good news is that apparently this occurs more than people realize, and once the baby is born her heart rate adjusts on it's own soon after birth and there are no issues. But that doesn't make it any less worrisome for us as her parents.

It just sucks because we've had a great, uncomplicated pregnancy this whole time and now this last week and a half I'm filled with worry and what-ifs.

So if you could spare a prayer that this all turns out to be nothing and her little ticker is ticking like it should, we'd greatly appreciate it.

Weight gain/loss: Gained 18 pounds

 Size of baby: I was a little overwhelmed with the irregular heart beat news that I forgot to ask my doctor what her guess was on Preslie's size. But according to the baby sites she is weighing anywhere between 6 1/2 to 7 pounds now; 19 1/2 inches long; the size of a pumpkin (whoa!).

Gender: Girl

Movement: She's still a squirmy little thing. Her most active time is between 12am-2am.

Sleep: Everything I ever said before about sleeping well, I take back. Ha! Given that she likes to be up from 12-2am makes it difficult to fall asleep. Sleeping on my sides have made my hips go numb so I'm constantly turning from one side to the other all night. I've been avoiding naps later in the day because it makes it harder for me to fall asleep at night. Luckily, I can go on little sleep so this all isn't too unbearable.

Maternity clothes: Yes.

Symptoms: Sore hips while sleeping, lack of energy, no appetite, feeling nauseated more often than not.

Aversions: Sometimes it feels like there is nothing that sounds good and I'm only eating at this point to keep the baby and myself healthy, unless I'm craving something specifically.

Cravings: I had a specific craving for The Cheesecake Factory's strawberry lemonade last week. That is the best stuff ever made. I was able to enjoy two big glasses on Sunday when Kevin and I had an early dinner. As well as their avocado egg rolls. Yumm-oh! I've also been craving sweets from time to time.

What I miss: Not being uncomfortable and being able to move a little more freely.

Best moment this week: Spending a lot of time with Kevin. He's been working from home a little more since I've been off so it's been nice being able to eat breakfast with him in the mornings and hang out with him in the afternoons.

What I'm looking forward to: Just to have a healthy baby here soon.

Baby Daddy: Every day Kevin tells me how much he thinks of Preslie and how he can't wait to have her here and hold her. He's going to be a good daddy.

A daily recap

I want to jot down what I've been doing since I've been off work. More for my own memory than anything else.

Mon. 3/11: 

 Caught up on bills, submitted my state disability claim, was on the phone for hours with HR trying to access my work account from home, then on the phone for some more hours with my hospital.

Cleaned up around the house and made dinner.

Took the dogs for a walk.

Tues. 3/12: 

Made a trip to Babies R Us to return duplicates and get the last of the things we needed from our registry.

Worked a little on the nursery.

Made phone calls.

Started looking for freezer meal recipes and making a grocery list.

Kev and I went out to dinner.

Wed. 3/13:

Gathered tax info for my meeting with our CPA.

Went grocery shopping.

Took the dogs for a walk.

 Made dinner.

Finished the Mom's on Call baby book (this is the method we'll be using for Preslie).

Thurs. 3/14:

Finished up Preslie's nursery and took pictures of it.

 Met with the CPA.

Took the dogs for a walk.

Edited pictures and posted about Baby's nursery.

Fri. 3/15:

Pretty much spent the entire ever-loving day making frozen meals. My mom will be here for a couple weeks after Preslie is born, so she'll be in charge of some dinners, but once she's gone and the nights Kevin doesn't feel like cooking our frozen meals will come in pretty handy.

  Sat. 3/16:

Cleaned the house.

Got the guest rooms ready for visitors once Preslie arrives.

Organized a hall closet that had been driving me crazy for a while.

Went through a box from our move (we still have about 4 boxes left so this felt like a big accomplishment).

Kevin and I went shopping for a couple hours.

Went to dinner.

Went over to a friends house to watch the UFC fight.

Sun. 3/17: 

I rested most of the day and took the dogs on a long walk this evening.

Mon. 3/18: 

Started laundry.

Paid bills and did some more stuff for state disability.

Gathered more tax information for the CPA.

Helped Kevin with dinner.

The end.

 

Baby Pino: 37 Weeks

Thank you everyone for the nursery love!!

How far along: 37 weeks. 

Finally full term and it feels good! I don't think there's any expectant mother or parents who aren't thankful they've passed another week. There are a lot of worries that go on while carrying a baby and the fact that we're healthy and still going strong is a big relief and blessing.

Weight gain/loss: Gained 17 1/2 pounds.

I didn't gain any weight this week, but I've been doing a lot of walking. I'm even wearing poor Stella out! I've been trying to walk the dogs every day, and they're not just strolling walks. I am powering through them!

Size of baby: Approximately 6 - 6 1/2 pounds (I'm thinking less than that though); a little over 19 inches long; the size of a winter melon.

Gender: Girl

Movement: So much of it. 

I thought it'd let up a little the more she grows and the less room she has but these past few days she has been non-stop. She's beating me up!

Sleep: I think I may be experiencing some pregnancy insomnia. 

It takes me a couple hours to fall asleep. But don't worry, I'm having no problem sleeping in. ;)

Maternity clothes: Of course.

Symptoms: Two occasions of false labor. Talk about frustrating! 

On Tuesday night I had seven straight hours of contractions that ranged from 30-50 seconds, every five to ten minutes. I didn't sleep at all that night. I thought for sure the next day we'd be having a baby, but once I finally did fall asleep and wake up....nothing.

Yesterday I went for a really long walk and the contractions were pretty painful for a couple straight hours, and then as soon as I laid down....nothing.

So I'm not getting my hopes up anymore. Unless my water breaks or I have that really big contraction, I'll just keep doing what I'm doing and wait. 

Aversions: Sometimes just food in general, but nothing specific.

Cravings: ICEE's, root beer, eggs and hashbrowns.

What I miss: Nothing at the moment. I'm thoroughly enjoying staying home! I'm looking forward to hopefully getting a day of rest soon because so far I've had something going on each day.

Best moment this week: This isn't really baby-related, but I've started the Downton Abbey series and I'm obsessed!

What I'm looking forward to: Of course for Preslie to come.

Baby Daddy: He got a lot done over the weekend that I was nagging him about. Like pulling weeds and cleaning the garage. None of that stuff directly affected me, but I just couldn't stand any of that stuff so he appeased me and did it all. Probably to shut me up, but I understand. Ha!

Preslie Kay's Nursery

When I started blogging (over three years ago), one of my most very favorite posts to read were nursery reveals. I've also been baby-obsessed since forever, so I couldn't wait to post my own one day.

I've known for a long time that if we ever had a girl, I wanted the nursery colors to be lavender, yellow, gray and white. I also knew I didn't want it to be "girly-girly" with tons of frills, lace and pink. Not that there's anything wrong with that, it's just not our taste. Since the fabric is pretty bold, I wanted to go with lighter versions of the gray and yellow for the walls and furniture. (The walls may look blue in some pictures, but they're really a light gray in person.)

Once we found out we were indeed expecting a girl I couldn't wait to start on her room. However, Kevin wouldn't let me until after the holidays. Which actually was a smart move on his part because the holidays were HECTIC. We started on Preslie's room in January and it was completely finished this past weekend. So it took us about a month and a half from start to finish. Prior to that, I did a lot of researching and collecting of items we already had, to make her room special.

You'll probably notice based on this room, that I like rooms to be crisp and clean and no clutter. I know it's not going to stay like this once Baby is mobile, but I'll enjoy it while I can.

There are a lot of pictures, so I'll let them do most of the "talking."

For the bedding, I found a vendor on Etsy that was reasonably priced and did custom orders. Another plus was she lives in the next town over from me so I was able to save on shipping and just pick it up from her. She does awesome work. Her family owned two large tailor shops in our county and she even has some sort of degree as a seamstress. I'll definitely be using her again for future nurseries!

My super patient, and detail-oriented mother made these drapes for Preslie's room. I was very particular about wanting them to be a certain way and she did an awesome job! Thank you, Grammy!

I'm going to brag here because I deserve to. This dresser was my dresser, and instead of spending $500+ on a new one, I decided to use it in here. At six months pregnant I spent every weekend and some week nights sanding this entire thing, and painting it all. It is definitely a labor of love. (Don't worry, I took precaution while doing this project.)

I love the prints that Leslie from Giraffic Arts was able to put together for me. I just sent her pictures of the fabric and she ran with it.

This is Kevin's silver rattle from when he was a baby. You'll notice his initials are engraved on it. It's pretty special to me (as is he).

My dad had made this mirror for my mom years ago. We now have it so I sanded and repainted it to use in the nursery.

The Piggy Bank was mine growing up. I thought it'd be perfect for Preslie to use her money wisely and save. HA! Kevin surprised me on my birthday with the cute frame and an ultrasound picture of Preslie. That was the first item he ever purchased for her.

This is my father's baby shoe. Definitely something I treasure tremendously.

My Grandma Ruth likes to write children's books. So one year when I was young she wrote a book about Raggedy Ann, with me in it as a main character and gave it to me along with the doll. So now I'm passing it down to Preslie. Oh, and when I was a baby my dad would always call me a Glow Worm, so I thought it fitting that Preslie have one too. ;)

 

Mini shoes!

The mirror nightstand I got from Goodwill for like $20!

This chair and ottoman is so incredibly comfortable. We spend a lot of time in here just relaxing on it. Grammy likes to have her morning coffee in here when she visits.

This little doll is named Lita. She was my most very favorite doll when I was a baby and growing up. Maybe it will be Preslie's too.

And of course I've always wanted a chandelier in a nursery. This is actually a mini chandelier. I didn't want something really massive because 1) they're crazy expensive, and 2) the room isn't that big.

And here are a couple photos with the blackout shade drawn to get idea of nighttime.

 I hope you enjoyed the tour! Now all we need is a baby!

Links to items:

Crib: Jenny Lind from Walmart

Bedding, pillow and blanket: Custom Baby Creations on Etsy

Curtain fabric (and bedding fabric): Carousel Designs (aka www.babybedding.com)

Lampshades: Kmart, lamps are old ones I had as a teenager, just spruced up.

Prints: Designed and printed by Leslie at Girrafic Arts (she also designed my thank you cards to match the bedding)

Framed "Preslie" print: Custom framed at Hobby Lobby

Glass knobs on dresser: Hobby Lobby

Changing pad cover: Little Owl's Nest on Etsy

Chair and ottoman: Newco Premium Rosie Glider and Ottoman in ivory from Babies R Us

Mini chandelier: Light Lady on Etsy

White bookshelf: Target

"You are so loved" print:  The Wheatfield by Katie Daisy on Etsy

Glass cloche holding pacies: Hobby Lobby

Hanging closet organizers: Babies R Us

Storage baskets in closet: I ordered two packs of three boxes from Rosenberry Rooms 

Chalkboard tags on baskets: Pick Your Plum about a year ago when they were being offered

Blackout shade: Select Blinds ,I got the kind that is cordless for safety reasons

Baby Pino: 36 Weeks

How far along: 36 weeks

Weight gain/loss: Gained 17 1/2 pounds

Size of baby: About six pounds (I feel like Preslie weighs less than that); 18 1/2 inches long; the size of a bowling ball.

Gender: Girl

Movement: All the time. Her movements have become less jab-like and more rolling around movements. She's still head down as of my doctor appointment on Friday. Today she's been chillin' like a villain with her feet in my ribs.

Sleep: Good. I love sleep. Since I'm now on maternity leave I've been trying to get in a nap every day I can!

Maternity clothes: Yes. Since I don't have to wear work outfits anymore I've really been enjoying wearing sweats and jeans!

Symptoms: 

1) I've been feeling nauseated every day; usually in the mornings. Sometimes I feel worse than I did in my first trimester, but mostly because I'm bigger now.

2) I want to make sure I write this down since I forget every week: I've had the dark line on my belly (linea negra) since 20 weeks. So far it runs from my belly button on down.

3) I've started walking a lot and it certainly gets contractions going but they don't stick around (yet). I've also been doing a lot of sitting on the birthing ball. That thing has been a lifesaver!

Aversions: Nothing really. I may sit down to eat something and then all of the sudden not want it anymore; but it's random.

Cravings: Still ICEE's (I sound like a broken record)!

What I miss: Nothing too terribly much right now. Not having to work for a long while has really lifted my spirits and reduced my stress level so I'm enjoying that for now.

Best moment this week: I have lots... 

1) My last day of work was on Thursday.

2) My baby shower on Saturday. It was so nice to see all of the family and visit with everyone. It was of course a beautiful shower, too.

3) My mom and Grandma coming to visit for the shower.

4) The nursery is officially done! I hope to have a post up later this week.

What I'm looking forward to: For this baby to get here!

Baby Daddy: Kevin's been amazed by my belly. Each day he tells me it looks bigger than the day before. He can't quite believe it. Neither can I.

Baby Pino: 35 Weeks

How far along: 35 weeks

Weight gain/loss: Gained 17 pounds

Size of baby: Possibly more than five pounds; about 18 inches long; the size of a small roasting chicken (HA!)

Gender: Baby girl (I have this irrational fear that she'll be born a boy and we'll have to completely re-do her his nursery and get new clothes)

Movement: Pretty much constant. We had a non-stress test last week because she wasn't too active the first half of the day, but she pretty much showed off and we were done within 20 minutes.

Sleep: It's been good. I don't wake up to pee very often; maybe once a night. I have to pee more when I'm standing up or sitting down. Laying down seems to keep that at bay.

I've been waking up on my own pretty early each day. I'm talking 4am or 5am. Just prepping myself I guess. ;)

Maternity clothes: I'm most comfortable in sweat pants and a t-shirt at this point. Oh, and I've discovered that I do not look cute in dresses while pregnant. I tried some on last night because I have my last shower on Saturday but they all make me look as big as a house! Too much flowiness going on. I do better with tighter fitting maternity clothes.

Symptoms: Just the usual at this point. Both hips have been really sore while sleeping, sitting and walking so not much relief there.

Preslie has been head down for quite some time. At this point it literally feels like every time she turns her head that her skull is grinding my pubic bone. It hurts so bad.

Contractions have let up some.

Aversions: Nothing in particular.

Cravings: ICEE's

I dreamt last night that I was at Costco and I dug right into a Marshmallow Reese's Peanut Butter cake. Right there in the store. Didn't even pay for it.

What I miss: My body prior to pregnancy. I can't wait to get back there (and in better shape than I was) and enjoy the summer in fun dresses and shorts!

Best moment this week: I got to see Preslie real quick in an ultrasound during the NST.

I cleaned the entire house Saturday night then went shopping for a new bedding set on Sunday for our room for something brighter and cleaner-looking. We had a dark gray set in there before, but now it's light blue and white and just feels fresh!

We installed the car seat on Saturday.

What I'm looking forward to: My shower this coming Saturday! This will be our third and last shower and we've been so blessed with all the goodies!

Baby Daddy: Here is Kevin's analogy about the current baking status of the baby:

"Babe, right now the baby is like your chicken pot pie in there. It's cooking away but the biscuits are still a little doughy, so she needs to cook a little longer until everything is cooked all the way through."

I could not stop laughing!