Tiffany, Mommy, Wells, Strong...

I was recently tagged in one of those 'tell 25 things about yourself' things on facebook. As I walked to work this morning, I began thinking about whether or not I was going to respond, and if so, what was I going to say. Of course, like any good expectant mother, my first thought was #1 I am going to be a mommy in two months. This thought then lead to a complete other train of thoughts. No longer was I contemplating the other 24 things about myself, but instead thinking about the fact that I automatically went to being a mommy as the first thing about myself.

Now, I definitely have to give my parents credit for teaching me to be a strong independent person that doesn't rely solely on a label to define myself. I did not, like a lot of first time parents, freak out at the thought of "losing" my identity and becoming 'Kaleb's Mom'. No longer will my name be Tiffany. But, I feel like I am ok with this.

As I continued to ponder these thoughts, it donned on me that I really was lucky. I know that I said I had to give my parents credit...but I hadn't really realized just how much credit, nor just how lucky I was to be ok with this identity loss. Because I realized that not only am I soon to lose my first name, but it was only a short eight months ago that I lost my last name. I do have to admit that I did have a slight cry session over the changing of my last name. However, again, it wasn't because I was losing some part of myself or my identity, but because it took so long to get Wells as my official last name, I wasn't sure that I was ready to part with it just yet. But I did, and am completely fine with it!

So, thank you Mom and Dad for giving me the strength to be totally ok with going from Tiffany Wells to Tiffany Strong, and then just 10 months later from Tiffany to Mommy. I am so glad to so easily make this transition, and even happier to post my #1 as being an expectant Mommy.

(I guess now I should start working on #2-25!)

Oh what a great day...

I am fairly certain that today will go down as one of the very best days of my pregnancy. Next to the first Dr's visit and the visit where we found out the sex of the baby, today was the best!! Why?? Yes, I had a doctors appointment, and yes I took the entire day off (as did Kevin), and while these two things contributed to my good day, they were by far not the best part. I got to spend an entire hour being pampered and laying on my stomach!! It was FANTASTIC!

My fabulous best friend, Kelly, got me a "mommy to be" massage for Christmas and today was my appointment! It was soooooo great. Shannon, my massage therapist, was amazing! She specializes in prenatal massages, so she knew exactly what I needed! I have never been so relaxed. This will most certainly be something that I indulge in during all of my future pregnancies! Thank you Kelly--you are AMAZING!!!

Then, to top off a great day, we went to Cheddar's for dinner and I got to get a cookie monster for dessert! What a great day!

Oh, and my doctors appointment went really well. Kaleb is still growing right on track and his heart beat was strong and steady. My blood pressure was down and I had only gained 1 pound since my last visit! (glad I went to the doctor before dinner!)

Man, what a fantastic day! Unfortunately, it's back to work tomorrow.

Seven Months???

So, according to my pregnancy journal, as of January 28th, I have been pregnant for a full 7 months. Seven months. Really? I assumed that because we found out that I was pregnant so early, the months would drag on and on and on. And yet, here I am 7 down and 2 to go. As you can see from the picture above, Kaleb has done a good job of growing this month! (Kaleb, not me!!) Yay for being one month closer to meeting my little monkey and no longer being pregnant!!

Silver linings...?

As most of you know, Kaleb has had me on a pretty strict eating schedule. I need to eat breakfast by 7, a snack by 10, lunch at noon, another snack by 3, and dinner by 6. If I get off on any of these my dear friend indigestion comes to visit. I have gotten really good about bringing snacks to work (at least for one of my two snack times) and Kevin always packs me a lunch. This way I can afford to eat enough throughout the day! However, sometimes I forget my snack or it just doesn't sound good. Then I know that I can always count on my two trusty fallbacks. Because I work in a store that has a mini convenience store inside, I am able to get my banana nut muffin and chex mix whenever I want.

Well, today was a fallback day. I had forgotten to pack snacks, and was really wanting the sweet and salty combination of my muffin and chex mix. I ventured upstairs, indigestion quickly burning a hole in my chest, only to find that we had sold out of both. BOTH??? how could this happen? Otis Spunkmeyer delivers every week. Michael ( who orders our convenience) always does such a good job keeping us stocked. HOW COULD THIS HAPPEN? So, I sadly settled for a fried apple pie and pretzels and made my way to checkout. When there he was...Michael. I sternly asked him how he could have let this happen? Expecting his usual sarcastic come back, I was completely blown away when he apologized and explained about some ordering mishaps...taking full responsibility. He then went on to ask which flavors of the two items were my favorites to ensure that he didn't let this happen again. What...how...am I hearing this correctly? Then it hit me...a good thing about being pregnant. He felt sorry for me! He knew how important it was to get the exact thing that I was craving. Wow...maybe being pregnant is not all that bad. ( it's only taken 7 months for this to happen) Of course, I'm sure I was a pitiful sight. Tired, big bellied me, waddling up to the cash register with two snacks and yet complaining because they weren't what I wanted. I was screaming for someone to take pity! I seriously thank you Lord for sending me this silver lining!

I am beginning to think that I should have started this blog a long time ago. After two days I am already noticing so many more good things about being pregnant. Don't get me wrong, I am still your resident no rainbows and sunsine pregers, but I am starting to see some of the good.
(of course as I am completing this post old mister indigestion is roaring...time for another snack)

Oh Kevin...

Last night, after completing my blog, I was proudly announcing to Kevin its completion and the fact that I already had comments. He politely listened and then asked, "what is your blog about?" I explained that it wasn't really about anything specific...just thoughts, the baby, being pregnant...etc. His only response was, "oh, so it's not about me?" I kind of giggled and said that I might post about him some, it just depended, but that I wasn't using the blog to complain about him. Which of course made me want to post about him!! So, here you go sweetie, a post about you!

With all of the complaining that I have done about being pregnant, the one thing I will never be able to say is that I had a husband that didn't understand or help me out. A lot of pregnant women complain about having to be pregnant and still do everything for their husbands as well. This I can never say. If anything, I could complain that he doesn't let me do anything at all. He cooks dinner, he goes grocery shopping, he does the dishes, he UNLOADS the dishwasher, he makes my lunch...I could go on and on and on. Last night I was unloading the dishwasher and he actually got irritated at me. He, quite sternly, informed me that he could do that and that I should just go sit down. Later, I was reading in my day by day journal and told him that it said this month I should really get a lot of protein. Even though he was watching tv, and I really thought I was talking to myself, he stopped-looked over and said, "hmmm protein...we'll have to make sure that you are eating a lot of meat this month." Then he went back to the tv. I know that this may sound like he was just saying something to patronize me and get back to his tv show. However, I know that for the rest of the week, we will be having very protein rich meals, and he will be making suggestions as to what I should eat for a snack that would be high in protein!

Now, I know that many of you are thinking, oh this will change. She won't be this lucky next time. Well, we'll see. I have faith in my husband and know that this is the only way he knows how to help me right now. I know that this sounds kind of backwards, but I cannot wait to actually have the baby and be able to repay him for all that he is doing for me right now.

So, there's my post for you sweetie. I love you and thank you!

And so I begin...

So, after months of contemplating, I am finally going to take on the world of blogging! I must say that I am a little intimidated. My sister-in-law, Rachel, has pretty much the best blog ever, and I am nervous to follow in her footsteps! But here goes!

I thought I would start my blogging with making certain that we all understand that I am not one of those 'rainbows and smiles' pregnant ladies! Yes, I love the fact that there is a little life growing inside of me, and yes everytime he moves I get excited... well almost every time! However, the overall feeling of being pregnant is...ughhh.

I have seen beautiful pregnant ladies all my life. Glowing, beautiful skin, healthy hair and all smiles. When I look into the mirror I see dry skin, hair that I really don't feel like fixing, and the scowl of indigestion. And do I mean INDIGESTION! As I have often times joked, if the old wives tales are correct, I am going to give birth to a 14 pound monkey.

Of course it could be much much worse. I have always been 'blessed' in the chest and rear areas. I have known this my whole life (thanks to my lovely brothers!) I always feared the worst when imagining myself pregnant. You always hear of women who really blow up in those two areas. If that were going to happen to me...well... I might as well take to bed rest during the first trimester. There would be absolutely no way my size 7 1/2 feet would be able to support my 42 triple Z chest and quadruple plus sized hips. Not to mention, where would I find the money for custom made clothes? My Dad always talks about getting a mu-mu from Omar the tent maker...did he really exist? and how could he be reached?

But, God spared me. I guess he knew that I wasn't really going to be able to handle a lot of the other pregnancy issues, so he cut me some slack! I have not gained any weight in either of those two areas!! Of course I do still have two 1/2 months to go! But really, weight has been the least of my worries. Not only was my biggest fear spared by our Most Loving Lord, but so was my husband's. Although he has never come right out and said it, I know that Kevin was terrified that I would become the psycho pregnant lady with hormones racing. Crying, screaming and laughing all withing five minutes. Especially when you take into consideration my usual temperament. But again, we were spared! My hormones have been normal (for me), and besides a little crankiness that comes with being exhausted, I have been quite pleasant. (and that's according to him--not my imagination--I promise!)

Overall, I really have had a perfect pregnancy. As far as the books go. Kaleb and I have both passed all of the blood and glucose tests. According to the doctor, he is growing right on track...although I am not convinced that he is not curled into a much tighter ball and is actually twice the size that he should be...all of that said, I am still not the happy go lucky, let's be pregnant for the next 18 years type.

Well, I did it. I made it through one post! I know it's a little long, but wow, once you start you really cannot stop! While writing this I have already began forming my next three or four posts! I hope that this kind of gives you some insight into my world and what is to come!