29 Weeks - 3rd Trimester

How far along?  29 weeks (yesterday)

Work out: Still teaching dance, although stretching is a little awkward sometimes. On days that I don't teach I usually take a 30-45 min walk. 
Maternity clothes? Yes. Got a few sun dresses and maxi dresses to wear on the warmer days, very comfy.
Stretch marks? No
Sleep: Besides waking up to go to the bathroom once in awhile, I'm sleeping pretty good. I sleep with 4 pillows. Tom says that I've started snoring, which he can't stand... I told him it's just payback.
Best moment this week: First I'll start with my shower that I had last weekend, it was a lot of fun. I also enjoyed spending time with my sister in-law and her son Jacob (cutest baby ever!). Check out this cute video of him on Youtube: Baby Jacob Laughing with uncle Tom & Dad  I also had a great day with my mom and sister Anna on Saturday, we went to the Minneapolis Farmers Market, stopped by our grandparent's house, then hung out on the patio at Psycho Suzies. Mother's day was also a lot of fun, hung out with the family at mom & dad's, it was a gorgeous spring day!
Miss Anything? I guess doing things with ease, things seem to be a lot more difficult when you have a big belly in the way.
Movement: Yes, we have a wiggly little baby. So fun to sit and watch my belly move. However, some of the movements are getting a little painful... big kicks and jabs of elbows, but it's still really cool.
Food cravings: Still fruit, but no big cravings like I have to have something right now. I noticed that I've started to feel full more quickly now that the baby is getting bigger.
Anything making you queasy or sick:  The heartburn some days is enough to make me sick. I heard this means the baby is getting hair.
Gender ideas: Still not sure. I have had a couple of dreams that we had a little girl. Tom is still set on it being a boy.
Labor Signs: No.
Symptoms: A little pain in my rib cage, heart burn, and swollen hands. For the most part I feel great.
Belly Button in or out? In
Wedding rings on or off? Off. This happened about 3 weeks ago, I cried. 
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy... a little stressed things are busy with recital weekend coming up, but other than that I feel great and very blessed. Anxious to meet our little one.
Looking forward to: My studio kids are throwing a shower for me tonight, I'm very excited. I'm also looking forward to recital weekend, I love watching my dancers perform and seeing how much they've improved over the year. 


Yesterday I got together with Erin and Jess who are also pregnant, we are all due around the same time.
Erin- August 9th, Me - July 31st, Jess - August 17th. 

Erin's having a girl and Jess is having a boy, so what will I have?

Bargain tips:

• Huge Garage Sales in Prior Lake, MN - Wild's Golf Course neighborhood. Saturday, May 19th. I heard some start on Friday though. Here's a link with more garage sales in Prior Lake: http://www.yardsalesearch.com/garage-sales-prior-lake-mn.htm

• I've posted these sites before, but I'm obsessed with them. Totsy.com  and  Zulily.com awesome deals! Check them out!

26 Weeks!

A pic from the dance competition this past weekend. My dancers all had their best performances of the season, I was very proud! 

I can't believe it - only 96 days until the baby's due date! I hope the time goes by fast, but not too fast.
I feel great, but starting to get a little uncomfortable. The baby is very active, which has been a lot of fun. I could sit and watch my belly move all day.

This is just a short update, I wanted to share a few shopping things real fast...

• Totsy is having a huge blow out sale - Check it out: http://www.totsy.com/join/BnkNPa0n

• The Brooklyn Park/Maple Grove Just Between Friends Sale started yesterday and runs through Saturday. http://twincities.jbfsale.com/pages/home

• Garage sales have started!

Happy Shopping!

24 Weeks - Happy Easter!

How far along?  24 weeks.  16 more to go!

Total weight gain: No comment!
Maternity clothes? Yes. I even started wearing some of Tom's t-shirts. 
Stretch marks? No
Sleep: Starting to get a little uncomfortable. I think I need to invest in a body pillow, I heard they are great.
Best moment this month: The 20 week ultrasound was really neat, Tom and I really enjoyed seeing our little guy/girl. Our baby was being stubborn (shocking) and they weren't able to get all of the facial measurements. I went back for another ultrasound around 21 weeks and brought my mom with. The baby was very active at the 2nd appointment, we got to see it wiggle around and even swallow. 
Traveling to Louisiana for Ian & Megan's wedding was a lot of fun. I enjoyed hanging out with Erin who is also pregnant and due just over a week after me. 
Miss Anything? Putting my shoes on with ease. 
Movement: Yes, lots! The baby is most active after I eat breakfast and when I'm trying to fall asleep. Tom has been able to feel the baby kick for awhile now. We recently discovered that you can actually see my belly moving, so we lay in bed and watch my belly when the baby is active. It's kind of weird looking, but still very cool.
Food cravings: Fruit, pineapple specifically. I'm always hungry, and trying my best to eat healthy and not over indulge.
Anything making you queasy or sick: No.
Gender ideas: Tom had another dream - he was running down the hall of the hospital screaming "It's a BOY!" I truly have no idea. However, Tom thinks he saw boy parts at the Ultrasound... but who knows it could have been anything. 
Labor Signs: No.
Symptoms: Heartburn, charlie horses... and hungry.
Belly Button in or out? In
Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or Moody most of the time: Besides feeling huge, I feel good... only 16 more weeks to go, which is very exciting!
Looking forward to: Finishing up the nursery. Tom has been a huge help moving furniture around and painting the new office/guest bedroom so we can work on the nursery. 

~ Baby Bargains ~ 

My sister in-law told me about this great book - Baby Bargains Book
It has been very helpful, and I highly recommend it to expecting parents! Not sure what you need? What brand is good? What is and isn't worth spending money? - GET THIS BOOK!!


Consignment Sales - Just Between Friends Sales 
We went to one in Blaine and it was a little lame, but I got an adorable little chair for the nursery at a great price. I heard the Maple Grove and Eagan sales are great! 


Totsy.com - 
Up to 90% off retail prices! Keep your eyes out for good deals. 


Zulily.com - 
Another website with awesome deals! I've found some cute nursery decor items on this website. 

Almost 1/2 way there.

Baby Buckley is the size of a large mango 

(or a Chipotle Burrito). 

How far along?  19 weeks - 20 weeks on Monday.

Total weight gain: 18 lbs (whoa!)
Maternity clothes? Love wearing leggings, my maternity jeans & a few other maternity tops that I bought at Destination maternity. I went to their grand opening at the Mall of America and got a bag full of free stuff! 
Stretch marks? No
Sleep: Pretty good... very vivid dreams though.
Best moment this week: I'm really looking forward to my ultrasound appointment on Friday. It will be fun to see how much Baby Buckley has grown since our last one. 
Miss Anything? I've noticed that some of the stretches I do with my dancers have become a lot more difficult. Bending over to put on shoes easily, I miss that. 
Movement: The little flutters I was feeling have now turned into kicks that you can feel with your hand. This started Tuesday, Feb. 21st. I could lay around and feel it kick all day, it's very cool. 
Food cravings: Not really, but those darn Girl Scout cookies are already gone, we/I ate them all! (Tom helped)
Anything making you queasy or sick: No. But the heartburn hasn't been fun.
Gender ideas: Tom had a dream (Feb. 18th - State Dance Team weekend) that he was singing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star to our baby girl! I got a little emotional when he told me that. Tom's family is pretty certain that it's a girl, and now Tom seems to think the same. I haven't really had any feelings.
Labor Signs: No.
Symptoms: Growing pains, heartburn, sleepy.
Belly Button in or out? In
Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or Moody most of the time: Cheerful - Spring is almost here and I'm almost to the 1/2 way mark!
Looking forward to: Getting started on the nursery. 

  DIY Project - Scrabble Fun!  

For my cousin's Bridal Shower I made her scrabble coasters and wine charms. Below is a picture of the wine glass charms I made. I forgot to get a picture of the coasters, but they also turned out very cute.
* Tip: Keep your eye out for scrabble games at garage sales and thrift stores!

Supplies:

-Jewelry wire   -Beading pliers with wire cutter    -Beads   -Scrabble pieces  -E6000 Glue  

-Blank metal charms to glue the letters on. (http://www.artbeads.com/hts437.html?icid=reccat)

Directions:

-Glue the scrabble pieces on to the blank charm. 

-Measure the wire the length you want it, remember you will have to fold over the ends so they hook together around the glass. 

-Make a loop on one end of the wire, add beads 1/2 way, then add the dried scrabble charm, add more beads then fold the other end of the wire so it can hook through the loop.

Here's a website with directions on how to make the coasters:  http://craftingagreenworld.com/2011/06/18/how-to-scrabble-drink-coaster/

I was able to make 5 coasters and about 20 wine charms out of one Scrabble Game. Now I just need to figure out something cool to do with the board. Any ideas?

Let the 2nd Trimester Begin!

Hooray! We are finally out of the 1st trimester! Today is the 14 week mark, and yes I do have a baby bump. The baby is about the size of a lemon now and weighs about 1 oz.

How far along?  14 weeks

Total weight gain: 11 lbs
Maternity clothes? Not really... I did have to buy some more dance pants that are a little bigger around the waist. 
Stretch marks? No
Sleep: I've been sleeping really good.
Best moment this week: Carrie & Joe Wiita's Benefit. Hard work paid off for a really good cause. It's also been fun telling the rest of our friends. We are so thankful for all of the love and support we've received so far. 
Miss Anything? Red wine.
Movement: I swear I've felt some flutters. 
Food cravings: Not really. I do enjoy eating though.
Anything making you queasy or sick: No.
Gender ideas: Tom is still certain that it's a boy, I think it's just wishful thinking. 
Labor Signs: No.
Symptoms: Growing pains.
Belly Button in or out? In
Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or Moody most of the time: Mostly happy.
Looking forward to: Not being so tired in the 2nd trimester.

Here are the videos of our families finding out at Christmas:

The Buckley's-
The 1st minute or so of this video is the best, check out Ed's face!

The Caughey's -

This video doesn't get good until about 15 seconds in... I had to fire my cousin Colin from video taping.

Grandma & Grandpa Caughey-

Grandma reads the whole poem, it's a bit of a tear jerker.

We wrote a poem/letter from the baby... I found it online and tweaked it a bit. We put the letter in a box with a baby item like a bid or socks. Our parents also got ultrasound photos of the baby. 

1+1=3

I'm very excited to announce that Tom & I are going to have a baby!!! 

Which is one of the main reasons I started this blog. I plan on sharing my journey with friends and family as I grow and so does our family. 


Tom & I found out the exciting news when I took a pregnancy test the night before Thanksgiving, we didn't believe that it was positive so I took 2 more. All 3 were positive!! Now the plan was to keep it a secret and surprise our families at Christmas. Man was this hard! But we did it, no one had a clue! I even was able to fake having drinks at my sister's bachelorette party by drinking juice in a wine glass and ordering small glasses of pop at the bar (with a lime in them to look like Rum & Coke). 


At about 6 weeks we had a bit of a scare and spent a night in the ER. At first they thought I was miscarrying, which was sad to think about. After a few tests and our first ultra sound (at 2:00 a.m.) we found out that I had subchorionic hemorrhaging which was what was causing the pain and bleeding. All I kept thing was "is this what it's going to be like for the whole pregnancy!?" After a few weeks I started to feel better. I think this night in the ER was when it really hit Tom that he's going to be a dad! He was so helpful and sweet that night, he took very good care of me.

These pictures were taken at my sisters wedding on New Years Eve. We told most of our family on Christmas because I knew there was no way to hide that I wasn't drinking at the wedding. Plus we just couldn't keep it a secret any longer!

Due date: July 31st, 2012

How far along?  13 weeks

Total weight gain: 8 lbs
Maternity clothes? Maternity jeans were my first purchase, LOVE them! I can still wear most of my normal clothes, but I do have a little bump starting.
Stretch marks? No
Sleep: All the time, I've been really tired!
Best moment this week: On Wednesday I had my 12 week appointment, my mom came with me and we got to hear the heartbeat. 150 is the heart rate, so fast! I've also really enjoyed telling my dancers at the studio & the high school. They are all so excited! 
Miss Anything? Red wine, so I just smell it when people have a glass.
Movement: Not that I can feel. We got to hear it move around when we heard the heartbeat.
Food cravings: Not really, I've been more hungry than normal though.
Anything making you queasy or sick: No.
Gender ideas: My sister in-law Andi had a dream that we had a boy. 
Labor Signs: No... scary to think about.
Symptoms: Just tired and feeling bloated.
Belly Button in or out? In
Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or Moody most of the time: A little of both... mostly tired did I say that yet?
Looking forward to: Spreading the news to the rest of our friends.


*Videos of our families on Christmas finding out the news - coming soon! 

Just over 2 weeks till Christmas

Can you believe it!? Christmas is in almost 2 weeks!!! So much to do and so little time!

Here are some more great websites with fabulous deals to help you finish your Holiday shopping:

Haute Look - Designer clothing, shoes, jewelry and more for a steal!
https://www.hautelook.com/login

Gilt - 60% off Designer items!
http://www.gilt.com

One Kings Lane - I first heard about this website on a TLC TV show and had to check it out. I've baught some wedding gifts and other items for myself off this website.
https://www.onekingslane.com

Etsy - If you don't have time to make something special why not purchase a beautiful handmade gift. I love Etsy & could spend hours looking at the site.
www.etsy.com

Vista Print - FREE Custom mug, just pay shipping! $5.79
http://www.vistaprint.com/vp/ns/studio3.aspx?pf_id=A0W&combo_id=156924&free_studio_gallery=true&referer=http%3a%2f%2fwww.vistaprint.com%2fvp%2fgateway.aspx%3fS%3d2445789883%26AFFID%3d48&GNF=1&rd=2

DIY Gifts - There are so many GREAT ideas on Pinterest (my new obsession) - www.pinterest.com 

Spray paint lace onto a clear glass ornament, or jar for candles~

     

Used Corks made into a cute Christmas Tree~

I will be trying these things... pictures coming soon.

HAPPY SAVING & HAPPY SHOPPING!