Oh Yeah - 33 is my favorite number!

Ok, so if you know me well, you may remember I was going to do a project called "The 33 Project" which focused on life changing events at the age of 33. There is a big focus on the number 33 - most notably that Jesus Christ died at 33 (if you religious) - and many ideas out there that 33 can be a life changing year for people! It was for me!

Well, this week I have reached my 33rd week of being pregnant! And that means, I have 7 weeks left! Oh yeah! This week is a busy week for me - besides growing my little one in my belly! I turn 37 - hmm I see a trend in numbers here - on Thursday 9/2 and I am heading up to Napa for my brother-in-laws wedding! It will be a nice way to ring in a new year and enjoy a beautiful place (without wine of course=( I have lots of work to do this week and I am treating myself to a facial and massage as well as meeting with a new life coach this week! Lots to do!

On baby, she should be close to 4 pounds (like a pineapple) and as long as 17 inches. That is crazy! She is currently losing her alien looking skin and looking more like the baby she will be when she enters the World!

I cannot wait to meet her!

Hmm, yeah, I am ready!

OK, so I have 7 weeks left to go and I know, I know, things will change, we will have a baby to watch over all of the time, I will be up all night for feedings and diaper changes, my life will never be the same, I won't be able to leave the house without baby in tow or having a babysitter, and so on! But I have to tell you, I am TIRED of being pregnant!!!!

9 Months is a LONG TIME!!!!

I would just like to be able to sleep on my stomach, dress in cute clothes without worrying about clothing my big bump, have a few glasses of wine when I am hanging with friends and in general just have more energy! I am EXHAUSTED! And I am ready to meet this little girl!

I have heard from some women to enjoy it and embrace it, but seriously, how the heck do you enjoy life when you are uncomfortable and unable to do what you want. I am not a "sit on the sidelines" kind of person...I like to get up and go!!! And I need that in my life!

Ok, my daily gripe is done!

Thunder thighs!

Holy crap, are those my thighs? Seriously?! I spent years getting my legs down to a decent thinner size then they were during my more pudgier days, and snap, within a 9 month pregnancy I have booming thunder thighs! Scary!

That is all for today!

Oh Holy Hell - I am TIRED!

I cannot believe the big waste of space I have become. Every day - if I do one thing outside of laying in bed - I am forced to lay down on the couch or bed by 3 PM! I bring my computer with me to try and be productive, but my eyes are so tired and my body feels useless so I am not much use to the human race right now! I need a jolt of energy....how do I find it???

Pix is of my daily office! I start out at the desk or table but always end up on the couch with pillows, water and my computer. How do women who have full time jobs do this???

Mimosas, Sun and the Ladies Come out for my LA Shower!

This past Sunday, my LA friends threw me a wonderful shower that capped off three amazing celebrations across the Country for Baby Duffy. Tim and I feel so grateful and lucky to have so many wonderful family and friends who threw us showers and came together for the events and those who sent us so many wonderful gifts and blessings! Baby Duffy is a very lucky girl and so are her parents!

Sunday's shower was held at 26 Beach in Marina Del Rey and we all enjoyed some great brunch, mimosas (thanks to Kim) or OJ, catching up, cake and ice cream, cupcakes and some great girl time! It was such a great time, I am so grateful! Even little Emily Linnecke joined us - just 5 weeks old!

32 Weeks - Only 8 More to Go...Seriously?

Well, I am down to 8 weeks! 8 weeks! That sounds crazy to me! That breaks down to just 2 months or 56 days. Now through all of my years in this life I can tell you that 8 weeks can FLY by! Especially when you are excited about what is at the end of that 8 weeks! Baby Duffy will grace us with her presence! I am officially due October 20th via the Doctor but from my online calculator I am due on October 17th, which is exactly 8 weeks from yesterday (Sunday, July 22). So we shall see who is right. My Doctor says if I think the 17th (I was saying the 16th, but in actuality it was the 17th) that she could come on the 17th. Either way, it is going to be crazy!

Much to do before that day though, including nursery set-up, getting all of the last minute stuff we need for baby, confirm hospital, classes, yaddy yah, you have heard this before!

So, at 32 weeks, Baby Duffy on average should be weighing in 3.75 pounds (the size of a Jicama) and is about 16.7 inches long. My Doctor informed me that the baby is actually measuring a little small but nothing to worry about! I am sure that is just because Tim and I are both kind of short=) OK, maybe I am! Tim is average in height! Baby Duffy's heartbeat sounds great and as I type she is moving around, probably trying to find some space in my short torso! I am starting to wonder how the heck she is fitting in there when I am just 5 foot 2 inches tall!

In general, I am feeling pretty good...again, just really tired at various points of the day. I am happy to report I get sleep thanks to my body pillow! And I am not feeling too uncomfortable yet! But it is VERY easy to just lay down most of the time. I need to push myself to get out, walk, workout and keep moving!

Nursery Before Pix!

Well, Tim and I have a lot of work to get this baby nursery set-up. Painting, organizing, decorating, ect....and after all of the wonderful showers we have had (thanks to everyone who could make it and who sent us lovely gives), we have a lot of things to put away! I thought I would share the current state of affairs before we really tackle this project!!!

31 Weeks....down to single digits!

Ok, so we are getting close to having this little girl come into our World! We are at 31 Weeks with if all goes well, just 9 weeks left. That brings us to a little over two months if that! WOOHOO!

That being said, I still have so much to do! My To Do list is two pages long and feels quite overwhelming. I still have to get a pediatrician, paint the babies room and put it all together, launder everything, get a few important items like a breast pump, monitor, diapers, bottles and more. We have 3 classes we are signed up for - Breast Feeding, Childbirth and Infant Care - and yes Tim is coming to all of them with me! I have one more trip planned - a quick one hour flight to Napa for my brother-in-laws wedding over Labor Day. And work, it looks like I will be working with some clients up until Baby Duffy comes...which I like the idea of being busy but it is very hard to focus on gadgets when I have this little person coming into my World in two months!

Anyway, Baby Duffy should be over 16 inches long this week and around 3.3 pounds (like four navel oranges). She continues to kick and move around my belly! I head to the Doctor tomorrow to see how all is doing inside!

Thinking of travel, Baby Duffy has been in several places so far - Hawaii, New York, Boston, Las Vegas, New Orleans, Chicago, St. Louis, Los Angeles, Washington DC, Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, Paris, France and Denver and soon to be Napa. She is a little traveler already!

St. Louis Shower

I ventured back to the Midwest this weekend to visit my relatives for a few celebrations - my cousin Cassandra's wedding shower and my baby shower. It was a quick trip - too quick - but a fun weekend full of lots of girls, presents, pregnant ladies and wine (not for the pregnant ladies).

The shower was wonderful and lots of fun - thanks to my Aunt Dee Dee and Aunt Kelly for hosting and everyone who helped. Thanks also to the Rohleders who came in from Indiana for it! It was just a fun day full of quality time visiting with my family!

Here are some shots from the weekend!

Baby Pains!

So, I have been feeling pretty good, although exhaustion has really hit me over the past few weeks - especially in the afternoon. Today, was like a "Welcome to the World of the Third Trimester" initiation for me. I feel awful!

1. My lower back decided to start hurting. A lot! Like a constant pain pushing on my lower back with no relief in sight. I mean, I literally have been trying to find a comfortable position on my side, back, standing, sitting and to no avail! It is making it hard to do anything - work, walk around, lay down, sleep, yoga. I actually went to yoga today which I think may have made it worse. What surprises me is that I have had no back pain until this started and it feels so debilitating that I don't know how I can function if this keeps up. Is this normal for 30 weeks?

2. On top of it, I feel lots of pressure in my belly. Not sure if the baby is just growing rapidly now or what but there is a lot of action going on down there.

3. I am tired - today I slept for 3 hours on top of sleeping until 9 AM today. I do think I am fighting a cold or something as I felt very weak and achy today. But it was a day where I just could not do much....how do women do it who have normal jobs?

I leave for St. Louis Friday morning for a shower there, I hope I am feeling better!

Hospital Visit

Last week, we went for a tour at St. John's Medical Center in Santa Monica. We are planning on having the baby there - I have heard from two other ladies that it is a great place and from the visit I would have to agree. They have a new wing for women's health, and the Labor Unit is like a little condo complex versus a hospital. It is cozy, you get your own room for the labor and birth and the baby stays with you. Within two hours of having the baby, you are then moved to another private room for the duration of your stay...and again, the baby stays with you the whole time!

I really liked the place and hope everything works out with insurance and what not (Tim and I both have our own business which is proving that we will be paying a lot of pocket for the birth). But my mother, who was with me, said the place is amazing and I will want the most comfortable place to give birth. I think I will take her advice!

A few belly shots!

Here are some belly shots from the last few weeks:

1. Me in bathing suite at just about 30 weeks, an artistic shot I did on my own (Ok, it was not super artsy but I tried)
2. Green tie die: me at 30 weeks in Cabo
3. Blue dress: me at 29 weeks in Denver

Baby Time!

Last weekend, I got to go to Denver to visit my new nephew Rory Steven Rohleder! He was just one week old and so super cute! he slept most of the time but when I got to hold him or have him sleep on my laugh, he was just so precious! It really was a great weekend of getting a little bit of baby time before my baby comes. I got to learn a few pointers on newborns from my lovely sister-in-law Shannon - like you cannot submerge a baby's stomach until the umbilical cord remnant comes off, so when you give them a bath you have to go around the stomach area. I got to help give Rory a bath...It just made me so excited to have my own little newborn coming soon!

In addition to meeting Rory, I got to hang with 16 month old Finnegan and my family! What a great time, it really makes you see how wonderful having a family can be!

Here is to mommies, daddies and babies!

Babymoon does a mommy good!

So, Tim and I went back and forth on what to do for a pre-baby getaway! We were going to stay local and go down to Orange County, but my heart was really set on a long weekend at a wonderful resort where I could be pampered and we could relax and enjoy some time together before our life takes a new path. We finally agreed on doing the trip I had hoped for, staying at one of the top resorts in Cabo - Las Ventanas were we would be able to completely relax and be spoiled for 3 days!

We just went this weekend, and it was fantastic! Tim has been working and traveling like crazy and I have been busy with clients and trips for showers and family visits, so this was a much needed quiet time for us as a couple and individually.

First, this hotel is outstanding! If you can do it, I highly recommend it as a must do once in your lifetime. Cabo has some amazing resorts and Las Ventanas is one of the best! The service is off the charts - from private butlers for your room, pool staff who constantly fluff your chair, get you leg pillows, refreshed buckets of water and evian spray, a guy to clean your sunglasses, a box of kleenex showing up at the dinner table when you sneeze, personalized sewing kits, your choice of aromatherapy for your turn down and even a congratulatory morning treat at the pool for being pregnant. Anything you need you get here and we could not have enjoyed it more. Not only is the property just gorgeous, but the rooms are amazing and the people are just really nice. Food was pretty good - we would have liked a bit more variety but then again we did not leave the resort! We go to Cabo quite a bit so we thought it would be best to stay in one place and enjoy all the resort had to offer!

It was fantabulous and I would highly recommend a getaway of any caliber and timeframe before baby comes! It will relax you the mom and give you some time to enjoy downtime with your partner before the craziness of a new baby begins!

I am very behind - Just hit 30 weeks!

I think this is the longest I have gone not updating this blog. I am sorry for the delay, I have been traveling and had my mom visiting so been busy! Which is good!

So, I am officially 30 weeks! WOW!!! I am so excited. We are down to 10 weeks left! This is just crazy, I feel like a real pregnant lady now!

Things are going well on this end. Baby Duffy is close to weighing in at 3 pounds (a head of cabbage) and should be close to 15.7 inches in length. My stomach continues to grow and she continues to kick around and have some fun in there. Tim and I are just anxious to meet her, and decided yesterday we are going to start a movement to change the pregnancy length from 9 months to 6 months to expedite this process!

I start going to my Doctor every two weeks starting next week! I cannot believe I am on the final road to baby coming. What an exciting time this is going to be!