Circus & Easter Preparations

Saturday we went to the circus! It wasn't a fabulous show...but it certainly kept our attention! They had some "hardware" problems and two people almost fell from a rope tied to the ceiling onto the pavement below! It was SO crazy!! I really wanted to ride on the elephants - but Aurelio insisted I wait until I have a child to bring with me as an excuse. After the circus we went shopping for a nice bed set for our spare bedroom. It took forever; but we finally found just the right one; that wouldn't break our bank. It felt like such an accomplishment...lol. After all that walking and being out and about I was pretty tired and was happy to be heading home. We were able to have a nice evening together watching another DVD on baby development in the womb - a PBS version. It was actually very medically informative; I'm sure we won't remember half the stuff we learned; but it was neat to watch anyway.
I was however able to finish my second baby's blanket while watching the movie! :) My next project will be to crochet a baby's bonnet. I'll start that sometime this week.



We were invited to a chihuahua Easter party; so I went looking for some good fabric to make a dress for the girls. Here is the first one I made today...I have to find a new pattern for Lily because she's gotten too big/fat for the small chihuahua patterns I currently have. It would be nice if I could get really good at them and could start selling them to the other girls in the chi group :)...






Aurelio spent his Sunday doing some coding for a game he's writing. The dogs were happy to cuddle up next to him and lounge the day away. Hopefully he was able to get a lot accomplished! :)

I should note that he also cleaned up the garage and took all our extra boxes up to the attic. He also took the dogs outside to play; they are just LOVING him today :).

We're almost done with our taxes and are keeping our fingers crossed that we can get some money back to help pay our midwife for the birth...it's looking pretty good so far.

As always I'm counting down the days until NH...18 days left! :) I'm really looking forward to seeing everyone! When I get back Rosie is coming to stay with us for a few days - so April is going to be a great month!! :) Can't wait!!

BABY UPDATE!!!! :) :) :) 28 Weeks 6 Days

We had our last sonogram today!! The baby is 2 pounds 14 ounces today and my placenta has grown up and out of the way!!!!!!!!!!!! Which means we are a go for the home birth we wanted!! We are SO excited!! The sonogram expert said "You are so healthy - there's no reason for you to be here!" :) Little did he know that I was planning a home birth...

Joyce Nelson will be our midwife and her assistant Robin will join her for the delivery. I'll have my first "official" appointment with her on April 10th at 10am. Where she'll listen to the baby's heartbeat and measure my tummy. The doctor who measured my stomach today said that he thought our baby was going to be between 8-9 pounds - but I can't say I have much if any confidence in him. Our sonogram tech estimated a normal size baby; probably around 7 pounds...so we'll just have to see. I feel like it's going to be a big baby though. I can't believe he/she is already 2 pounds 14 ounces!! We didn't get very good sonogram pictures; they said it's because the baby has reached a size that is difficult to show on the monitors. The pictures we got just look like blobs and you can't really pick out the different limbs or anything. I'm glad we counted toes and figures last time! :)

I also took the glucose test this morning...which involved taking more of my blood - but we'll get the results back on Monday.

The baby was really active last night, but she/he wasn't the one who woke me up at 1am...it was Daisy! She had to go potty...then I had to go potty and I was hungry...so after a bowl of cheerios I was UP. I ended up falling back asleep around 3:30am and had to get up at 7am for my doctors appointments. Needless to say, I'm a little tired today. It makes no sense to me that my body is "preparing me for lack of sleep" with lack of sleep...NO SENSE AT ALL! That's just crazy talk! I did however get a chance to do some research online regarding diaper choice. I'm really leaning towards doing cloth diapers - the easy ones that are all in one piece and grow with the child. The bumGenius 3.0 diapers seem to be getting the best ratings from moms.

I found some great patterns for baby bonnets, sweaters and booties online and would really like to crochet some...though the patterns all seem to be written in a foreign language and I'm still having trouble desyfering it. I'm almost done with the boys blanket; so I'll put more time into the booties and bonnets after I've completed that.

Happy Birthday Grammy H!!!!

Today I woke up on the right side of the bed for a change! :) I was so restless yesterday; but today I'm able to go with the flow and get some chores done and it feels good.

I had two dreams last night about the baby - and the baby was a boy in both of them!! Aurelio has also had dreams about the baby and it's always a boy...BUT Grandma H is certain it's a girl and she has also predicted that I will deliver earlier than my due date! My midwife has predicted that I will deliver approx 10 days after my "due date" of June 13th...I'm not sure who I want to be right - though as we approach June I'm sure I'll be ready to have my body back.

Baby Reis is practicing moving his/her arms and legs; but has stayed away from my ribs for the most part - which I greatly appreciate.

Aurelio and I watched a Discovery Channel movie last night that takes you from conception to birth inside the womb. It was really neat to see what the baby looks like at the different stages. The new technology (3-D and 4-D Ultrasounds) allow you to see what your baby really looks like - not just the skeleton that the normal ultrasound gives you. Of course most insurances don't cover it - it's about $200 to go get a 3D ultrasound done. We're not going to do it because we want to keep the sex of the baby a surprise...along with it's facial features. The movie contained a lot of information on the growing fetus/baby; one of the things I found interesting was that the baby can actually remember things; such as songs you play frequently and other regular noises. It can also hear the moms voice much easier than anyone else's because everyone else's voice has to travel through all those layers and fluid to get to the babies ears. That's probably one reason why the baby favors me over daddy ;) (Just kidding Aurelio.)

Aurelio reads the baby Dr. Seuss stories at night to get him/her to settle down and let me sleep. It seems to work pretty well; and I'm enjoying a little more shut eye. Regardless, I know the baby is going to love it's daddy. He/she is very lucky. :)

We are taking the baby to his/her's first circus this Saturday! Though, I suppose we shouldn't count it as her/his first since they won't be able to see anything - just hear the noises. I plan on taking full advantage of our last opportunity to go to the circus as a couple and get myself some cotton candy! :) I'm sure next year will be much more enjoyable - and even more so when our child is old enough to really enjoy it and remember it.

We are also planning on going to the Dallas Arboretum again on Sunday if the weather cooperates. We've had a rainy/thunderstorm week and I'm looking forward to the sun. Sunday is supposed to be our first sunny day; so lets hope that holds up and we don't have to wait until Monday to see the sun. Though I'm sure Aurelio would be happy to get out of mowing the lawn this weekend ;).

Restless Wednesday

Looks like we'll be getting thunderstorms for much of the week. The rain is great, but I'm starting to get a mild case of cabin fever. My car sure isn't made for any kind of inclement weather; though I have to say it sticks to the road better than my miata ever did.

If you have any ideas on things to keep me busy; let me know! I feel like my days are spent cleaning and eating. I have pretty much scrapbooked myself out, and though I'm learning how to crochet; I can't very well sit and do that all day either. I've read a bunch of books on pregnancy and newborns, and I've taken a million baths. I feel like I need some kind of variation, something exciting...yet there is always something that needs to be cleaned or dinner that needs to be cooked - or dogs that need to be fed or taken outside. I've got myself stuck in a little rut of mundane tasks that is driving me crazy!

The baby still favors my right ribcage; but it's starting to hurt a little less. Maybe that area is just going numb...lol.

I had lunch today with a girlfriend of mine who is 32 weeks pregnant; she commented on my high heals and told me it won't be long now till my feet are too swollen to wear them. I'm trying to focus on the positives, and how in the next few weeks I'm just going to get bigger and bigger and more uncomfortable...so I should enjoy today - but heartburn and nausea just take the fun out of everything! I can't wait to hold our little baby - seems like the day will never get here. Though I know the second they are born I'll blink and they'll be one, then I'll blink again and they'll be 18.

Some day's it's really hard to be so far from the northeast...today is one of those days. When you just want to hop in the car and hang out with those most familiar to you.

Anybody doing anything special for Easter this year? Aurelio and I were thinking of decorating easter eggs and making some easter treats.

Stormy Tuesday

Whoa! It just started pouring rain out of nowhere! I was checking my e-mail and getting myself psyched for a nice relaxing bath, then WHAM! Pounding on the roof...then it was gone within the hour! Crazy Texas weather! It's now perfectly sunny with clear skies.

The baby kept me up all night, and I think I kept Aurelio up with all my tossing and turning. I think this will become the norm from now on. As my tummy is getting stretched by our not so little one...

I made some sugar cookies (from scratch) today and a pineapple tofu stir-fry for dinner. Aurelio found the stir-fry to be too sweet for his taste - but somehow the sugar cookies were just right ;). At least I can bake...if not cook. Lately I've been trying some new recipes and they've just been awful. If you have some good dinner recipes, PLEASE send them my way (jennniferlynnreis@gmail.com) Aurelio will be thankful :). I really enjoy baking; but cooking dinners has never been my forte and I fear I may never get the hang of it. No wonder Aurelio snacks all day at work... ;)

I joined the "All You" magazine book club and am looking forward to reading The Inn at Eagle Point by Sherryl Woods? It doesn't come out until March 31; but the hype makes it sound like it's going to be a great book. The local library is ordering some copies and I have requested one - so hopefully they will call me as soon as they arrive and I can grab one; because our first book club meeting is April 3rd (conducted online of course). Could be fun :)

Dallas Arboretum

Aurelio mowed our lawn for the first time since we moved in! Spring is FINALLY here!!! :)




We had beautiful weather this weekend and took the opportunity to go to the Dallas Arboretum. It was SO beautiful and peaceful we felt like we had stepped into another world. The smell of all the flowers was intoxicating.

We had a picnic packed and found a great place on a grassy knoll to sit and eat our sandwiches and sip our sparkling juice. I have never been so obsessed with grass before - the grass at the Arboretum was so amazingly soft - I just couldn't get over it. I actually made it a point to take off my sandals and walk barefoot!!

We got a family pass so we'll be able to go many times this year. You are allotted 5 tickets per trip - and those tickets do NOT have to be for just family. So, I'm planning on bringing some of my girlfriends in the next couple weeks. ALSO, if/when you come to visit us; you'll get in for free :).

Here are some pictures from the Arboretum:

Things that go Bump in the Night

I'm exhausted yet again this morning. The baby kept me up all night kicking and punching! I'm happy to know that our little one is growing strong and healthy, but mommy needs some sleep too.

I decided to start my day by cleaning up the kitchen, then relaxing in our jetted tub into the afternoon. That's become one of my favorite things to do. Relax in a bubbling bath surrounded by candles, reading books about pregnancy and natural birthing techniques. My second favorite thing is Aurelio's foot massages...mmm, maybe that ties for first...

To my surprise we received a package today from Grammy Hutchins; filled with a book for the baby, duckies for the tub and a nice soft fleece blanket to keep the baby warm in. The package also contained a book for me :) 'I'm a Mom, Now What?' I'm really looking forward to reading it. Looks like it will be really helpful in the first two years of our child's life. Thanks Grandma!!

It's in the high 70s again today, with a nice soft wind. The dogs are happily playing outside. We had another estimate done on how much it would cost to repair our fence - instead of replacing it. They are quoting $295 to get our fence back up in working condition...I'm thinking Aurelio might just have to pull out his handyman hat again and go down to home depot to get some fence wood...I think that's our best bet right now. We're trying to save up as much money as possible in order to pay for the birth of our baby and then all the things we need for the nursery...

Aurelio is still working on building the washer and dryer stand, but it looks like he might have it finished by this weekend...we just have to figure out how we're going to lift those machines up onto it...any ideas??

I started mowing our over-grown lawn today to learn that mosquitoes sleep in tall grass...Great! Ugh, I started chopping down our tall weedy bush things and all these giant mosquitoes came flying out at me! Ugh, I was already uncomfortable with the prickly grass touching my feet - but those bugs just pushed me over my tolerance limit! THEN came the yellow jackets...I shut off the mower and went running into the house, pregnant belly bouncing and all! I slammed the door shut without meaning to and the dogs seemed alarmed at mommy's weird behavior. I couldn't help but giggle, then peak out the window to see if there had been any onlookers. There were none, my crazy jog was kept my little secret.