Strike!

It was a rainy Memorial Weekend and we were stuck in town. Thankfully so were some of our friends, so what else to do but go bowling! It's been a long time since I've been bowling, and I surely wasn't pregnant then, but I've always loved it and wasn't half bad either. Perhaps this belly will give me an extra oomph! (or not)  

 It looks like I smuggled in my own bowling ball!!

It was a ton of fun and I bowled some good games...and some not so good ones. After 5 games, I was exhausted and pretty crampy. I think it gave me my first Braxton Hicks. But it gave me an idea! As I get closer to my due date, perhaps some bowling will help move things along, we may have to give it a try :)

In and Out

...and I'm not talking about the fast food burger joint (though that sounds delicious right about now!)  I'm talking about my belly button. I'm officially an "outie".

I've been watching the slow progress of my changing belly button, which was once very much an "innie", but it finally totally popped out a few days ago. I will save you and not take a picture; preggo belly's really aren't all that pretty. I may have to start doing the band-aid trick for some of my thinner shirts, though I may not really care either. It's kind of fun!

I'll be curious to see it go back, or will it even go back to an "innie"? And how quickly will it happen after Baby B arrives? Another mystery of pregnancy...

Project Nursery - Part II and III

It's been awhile since I updated everyone on our nursery progress and I'm happy to say..ALMOST DONE!
We're almost to the fun part, washing everything and putting away all the goodies we've gotten thus far.

I am a bit behind in posts, so I combined updates on our progress: 

Part II - The Hard Way
After finally getting the office all cleaned out, it was time to install the chair rail and do some painting. It was J's decision to keep the paint color in the room; he really didn't want to have to repaint again and since it was gray, it would work just fine for a gender neutral nursery. Little did he know this may have been more work than just painting the room.

The chair rail was up and it actually went really smoothly. We painted it white to match the crib and dresser/changing table. What a difference it makes in the room! However, the trim in the room was still wood color and looked weird with the new white chair rail. The time and cost to buy all new trim and doors for the room was too much, so time for painting. The trim in the room is probably as old as the house, over 50 years, and had a sheen finish, so it needed to be sanded before it could be painted. J took a day off work and sanded all the base, window, and door trim as well as the door and closet door. There was sawdust everywhere. We tack clothed the whole room to get all the dust out and then began taping. We taped the windows, door frames and base trim, which meant taping to protect our hardwood floors. A LOT of tape.  Like I said before, it may have been easier to just have painted the whole room, but I actually love the way it's turned out; it's the nursery I dreamed of when we started this project. Thanks honey!!

Part III - The Barrett's vs. The Glider
The last big purchase we made was the glider/ottoman. I have been fretting over this purchase for months. I was determined to find the perfect one (white wood with tan fabric) while trying to be thrifty. I found our crib and changing table/dresser on Craigslist and was so happy with them that I was figured I could easily find a glider/ottoman as well. I scoured Craigslist daily. When I did find a white/tan one, it was usually a bit more beat-up than I wanted (and overpriced!) so I finally realized that I should just spend the money and get a good one. I figure this is something I'll be using daily so it made sense to splurge a bit to make sure it was comfortable and sturdy.
Once I decided to buy a new one, the process of deciding which brand started. Turns out there are quite a few brands of them from super expensive to cheap, good reviews and bad reviews. Overwhelming! I finally found one that not only matched my picky colors but was also very comfortable...and on sale (score!) Thank you Babies R Us!

I bought it the day after I saw it int he BRU mailing and even went across the city to another store to pick it up. No way I was going to wait for it to be shipped to me. They loaded it into my car and I was a bit surprised by the size of the box, not too big. Hmm..I bet it's mostly put together (the back, seat, arms) and we just need to assemble the pieces together. Heh. Not quite. We pulled everything out of the box and stood looking at a pile of pieces, screws, dowels and some very confusing directions. Although I didn't think to get a picture of all the pieces, I did get a shot of part of the directions. And I thought IKEA was bad..

Of course I wanted it put together NOW :)  So J grabbed a beer and a screwdriver and we went to work. An hour later, we were still on step #5 and were barely speaking to each other; I was almost in tears. I cracked open an O'Doul's (which did not cut it) and we decided to take a break, eat some dinner and come back refreshed.
So an hour later, we started back up again and this time, we worked through it. Two hours later, we had a fully assembled glider and ottoman! And next time, I'll pay the money to have it assembled!

I love it!! And turns out, so does big brother Bear. I think he's found his new spot :)

Pregnancy Brain

I've read about the infamous "pregnancy brain" and remember my girlfriends telling me how it seemed like the baby sucked their brains during pregnancy. Wow, they were right!
Most of the time I just feel dumb and forgetful, but I have done some really stupid things and can definitely laugh at them. So I thought I might as well share some of these things. Blame it on the pregnancy brain.

Lather Up!
I've been a little obsessed with Argan Oil. It's a natural oil that is said to improve skin elasticity, aka..no stretchmarks..so I've been oiling up daily since about 8 weeks. I came across the Organix line at Ulta and saw they had body wash, lotions, conditioners, all with Argan Oil as a main ingredient. Score! I bought some body wash and was pumped to use that in the shower and then continue with my routine and oil up after. I figured I can't get enough help with skin elasticity, right?
Soon after using the body wash, I realized that it never had suds. I checked our water softener to make sure we had salt, and we did. Then I just assumed that since it was organic, perhaps it just didn't make suds. So I continued to use it every day...for weeks. And since it didn't make suds, I had to use quite a bit of it to cover my whole body. This body wash was a bit more pricey than my normal stuff, so I was irritated that I was going through it so fast. That's when I finally decided to take a closer look at the bottle. Oh. My. Gawd. 

Yep, I've been using body LOTION as body wash for weeks. Well, that sure solved the mystery of why it wasn't making suds. But now the question is: have I been dirty and stinky for the last few weeks?!
Needless to say, I've since gotten body WASH and am lovin' the very sudsy showers :)

Flip-Flopped

As you all know by now, my feet are swollen. I've gotten over the loss of my "normal" shoes and boxed them up for an after-pregnancy reunion and am now thankful that it's summer and sandal season! No more need to try and squish these pudgy toes into closed-toe shoes.

I have quite a few pairs of flip-flops and also bought a few new pairs since they'll be getting a lot of use in the coming months. This morning I grabbed a pair of dressier Kenneth Cole flip-flops that I had found at the end of last season at DSW (a great find by the way) and slipped them on. They were a bit tight, but I'm used to that, so I continued to get ready for work. About 15 minutes later, I felt some "relief" on my right foot and looked down. NO!!

Kenneth Cole flip-flops = 1; Gretchen = 0

How convenient I just got a coupon in the mail for DSW. Time for a new pair (or two!) and perhaps in a 1/2 size bigger :)

Fertility Friends

I have a lot of great friends. Ones I've known since elementary school and ones I've just met. Ones that I work with and ones that I party with. I have a group of very dear girlfriends and hold them very close (and they know it!). I am who I am because of them and can't imagine my life without them.
Lately, some of my greatest friends, have been my Fertility Friends. No one should EVER go through their infertility journey alone; you need to have someone who's been there and knows all that the journey can bring. Of course my dearest girlfriends were always there for me, but my Fertility Friends were there for me in ways no one else can explain unless you've been through it yourself. Looking back, I am a luckier person having gone through this journey, as I've gained some great new friends. Although I hope to never go through this journey again, I know will always be there for me and I hope they know I'll always be there for them as well.

Tiffany was one of my first Fertility Friends. We had worked together in the past and kept in touch through Facebook. I'm not really sure how it came up, but we realized we were both struggling with infertility and instantly we had a deeper bond.
When J and I first started our journey in December 2010 with our first clinic, Tiffany was also starting with the same clinic and her first IUI was one month after our first. We were there for each other every step of the way. Supporting each other with all the emotions, the questions, the advice, it was so great to have each other while going through the same things.
When we decided to take a break from this clinic due to differences with the Dr. and after 5 failed IUI's, she was my rock and supported me when we decided to switch clinics. She never gave up hope for us and kept me going.
Tiffany got pregnant on her 4th IUI and by this time, we were on our break before starting with the new clinic. I was ecstatic for her!! One of us "won"! But then, I was devastated to learn she miscarried soon thereafter. I was now her rock and did what I could to keep her spirits up and to cheer her on to continue with another IUI. And what a success it was! She was pregnant again..and this time the baby was going nowhere!
This was very hard for me, as by this time we had 2 more failed IUI's and were now researching IVF clinics. Tiffany never gave up on me and knew that although I was super excited for her, she also knew how hard it was for me. She gave me the space I needed and we had a pact that if I couldn't hear about the pregnancy, she wouldn't tell; though thankfully it never came to that as we had quickly picked an IVF clinic and once again, Tiffany was my cheerleader. She even was my chauffeur after my egg retrieval, which I can't thank her enough since I was not a fun passenger.
She was also one of the first to know when we got our news. WE DID IT! We were both pregnant at the same time!! But our friendship doesn't end here.....it's only starting...and I am so thankful for that.

Congratulations Tiffany on your beautiful baby boy! He is so blessed to have you as his mother!

Happy Mother's Day!

I've always loved celebrating Mother's Day. It makes us stop and truly look at our mothers and appreciate all they've done for us. Funny how it takes a Hallmark holiday for us to do this, though I know most of us appreciate our moms every day and our moms know we do too :)

My mother has been there for me during the best of times and the worst of times and always loved me unconditionally. Her never-ending love and support has meant more to me in the last few years, something I'm not sure I can ever thank her enough for. I can see in her eyes, she cannot wait to see me be a mother myself, and perhaps that is all the thanks she needs. To be a grandmother. And I cannot wait to see her be one; this child will be so very lucky!
I also have an amazing mother-in-law. I cannot be luckier to have married a man who's been raised by a woman with such strength and determination. She makes having a great relationship with her easy. She is someone you can go to for advice and knows when you just need a big hug. I'm glad Baby Barrett will also be able to have a great relationship with her as she will always be there for him/her.
Today I also celebrate the grandmother I have left. My Mimi. She has been the matriarch of our family and has watched us all grow up, something I hope to be able to do with with my future family. I am so grateful that I've enjoyed her in my life for 32 years and can't wait for her to meet her great-grandchild!

I woke up early this morning to start prep for having everyone over for Mother's Day brunch and it hit me...I'm a Mom too!! Although I haven't birthed this baby yet, I'm still nurturing and caring for Baby Barrett every second of every day, a job I LOVE (swollen feet and all). I will forever now know the unconditional love that mother's feel..along with all the worry that comes with it.

Happy Mother's Day to all you mommies out there and all you mommies-to-be, which include many of you currently pregnant and those of you who's miracles are just around the corner! I have no doubt in my mind you too will be celebrating this day next year with a swollen belly or a baby in your arms.