About Me

Hi! I'm Abby. My husband, Carl, and I are happily married since October 2007. Our little family of 2 (well, 3 if you count Chief, the dog) added one more in October 2011 when we welcomed Audrey Elizabeth, our first child into the world. Our life was forever changed. And to add to the joy and excitement, we added another daughter, Clara Marie, in May 2014. I wanted to create this blog originally to document all the milestones throughout my pregnancy with Audrey so we could remember that special time in our lives. And now I get to write all about Audrey and Clara and our life with these amazing "Larson Ladies", which is so much more fun!

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Sunday, August 14, 2011

1st Nike+ Sportband Walk Stats

Last Summer, I began to like running... weird, right? And to track my runs, I had always used a Garmin Forerunner 301.  It's really nice and provides a lot of information, but it's so bulky on my wrist.  For Christmas this past year, my sister Ashley got me a Nike+ Sportband as a gift.  It's a simple bracelet that you wear and not bulky at all.  So easy!  Well, let's just say I haven't run as much this Spring/Summer as I planned to as of Christmas 2010.  This Spring, I ordered a little park that allows me to attach the special chip to my shoes.. but can you believe it, I hadn't yet used the Sportband!

The temp was awesome this morning!  It was about 70* out, so Carl and I decided to go on a long walk with Chief.  Carl checked the doppler before we left the house and it was completely clear.  Forecast showed "cloudy", nothing about rain.  Well, sure enough, as we were heading to Old Plank Road Trail in New Lenox, it started sprinkling.  On the trail, there's a lot of tree cover so our walk was still very enjoyable.  And it really only drizzled on us.  Nothing like last night at the Chicago Bandits' game where we got poured on!  :)

We walked a little over 3 miles.  Here are the stats:

I love that Nike assumes we ran.  Let's just say I'm not doing much running these days!  I did run to the bathroom the other day and got heartburn immediately afterward.  :)

I felt really good on our run.  The weather was cool, which is a big change from the hot temperatures that have been the norm this Summer.  After we get done walking, though, I feel this pressure in my lower pelvis.  I've kinda been taking it easy this afternoon.  3 miles used to not bother me at all... but now I feel it a lot more.  Audrey is weighing in now at about 3 pounds and is around 15.7 inches long.  That probably explains the pressure, huh?  

Curtains for the Nursery... Sneak Peek

Curtains are finished!  Mom has been working on them over the past few weeks and she and Carl installed them on Saturday morning.  They are just beautiful and totally complement the bedding.  The fabric is just beautiful.  I love all the green and pink and the different textures and patterns.  I keep telling Mom she should do this professionally.  She is so good!


We chose to do full-length curtains on each side of the window.  Mom found a nice white curtain rod and beautiful white finials that match the dresser and crib to hang the side curtains from.  We are going to cut the curtain rod down just about another inch on each side so that the finial lays right on the outside of the bracket.    The [faux] Roman Shade spans across the width of the window and lays right behind the side panels and the curtain rod. 



Mom incorporated some pink rick rack onto the full-length drapes on the sides.  The top fabric is this beautiful green and white fabric and the bottom fabric is the fitted crib sheet from the baby bedding collection.  I love how these 2 fabrics play off of each other and go together.  And the pink rick rack ties them together so perfectly.  

These are Roman Shades made out of this really cool fabric we found and really liked.  It integrates so many of the colors from the bedding in a fun way and in a great pattern.  Mom added the beading, which I love.  We debated on whether or not to make these shades functional, but we ultimately decided that Mom would sew them so they stayed just like this and we did not use them as real shades.  We already have good blinds in there, and really these shades are just for decoration.  And let's be honest, they'll look better for a long time to come if we aren't pulling them up and down.



This is just a preview... more pics to come!  Carl's working on the closet doors in the bedroom and right now, everything is pulled out of the closet and all over the room.  And the mattress and box springs are standing on end leaning right up against the shelving unit underneath the window.  I'll of course post better pics when #1 the window is in clear view and the entire room is put together.  Exciting stuff!

Letter to Audrey

We received this letter in the mail a few weeks ago:



It's from Grandpa Tim addressed to Audrey Elizabeth!




The letter reads:

July 18, 2011


To my precious granddaughter Audrey Elizabeth,


Everyone is very excited that in about 3 months you will be born!  Your mom & dad are busy preparing for your arrival.


You will be your mom & dad's 1st child and they may be nervous because as the world will be new to you, their new world with you will be new to them.  Fortunately for you, you have 2 sets of very experienced grandparents and we are equally anxious and excited for you to light up our worlds!!


You are not born yet and we all love you very much.


Your loving Grandpa Tim
oxox


P.S. I sure hope you like being held!


It made me cry when we received this, I saw who it was from, and then read the letter.  Audrey is so blessed to have grandparents who love her so much already.  Grandpa Tim is really excited and cannot wait to meet her.  Grandpa Tim was the best Dad I could have ever asked for, so supportive and loving and full of wisdom.  And he's already a wonderful and loving Grandpa!

We are going to put this letter in a safe place so Audrey will always have it.  Her first letter!

Thursday, August 4, 2011

28 Weeks

I'm nearing the end of my 28th week!  I feel like the 2nd trimester just flew by.  And now it won't be long before we meet Audrey.  :)  She weighs as much as a Chinese cabbage.  What the heck is a Chinese cabbage?  I don't know... but they say it weighs 2.25 pounds.  And she is about 15 inches from head to heel.

This week, I've felt pretty good.  The doctor confirmed that the tingling I feel under my left ribcage after I eat is acid reflux.  She said that is right where the esophagus meets the stomach.  Ever since I've felt the tingling, I haven't had bad heartburn.  I will take the tingling over the heartburn burning in my throat anyday!

I got my test results back from my glucose (and other things) test.  My sugar level was in the normal range.  I scored 128, and they have patients come back and do the 3-hour test if the sugar level is 130 or above.  Whew - close call!  But they did tell me that I am low iron, so now I take an over-the-counter iron supplement twice a day.  I sent Carl an article about iron deficiency during pregnancy (apparently it's really common) and the article said that if you're low-iron you may experience low energy and feeling run-down.  He emailed me back:  "So, do you think you're iron-deficient normally (before pregnancy)."  Haha!  Probably the funniest quote from Carl this week.  (By the way, I really do think I'm iron-deficient normally... Carl may call it "narcoleptic", but now I can call it iron-deficient.)

Last weekend, we were in Iowa for a friend's wedding (Ted Bliefnick).  I got to see a lot of people from Decatur/Forsyth that I haven't seen in a long time.  It was a really fun wedding!  You would have thought that I would have taken some pictures, and at least gotten a picture with Carl, me, Sam, Lindsey, and Josh Swift.  But let's just say that it's not my top priority to carry my camera with me at all times.  I'm not too ecstatic about taking pics lately.  :)  I took only 1 pic, and it was a self-portrait of me and Carl.  


It was a nerve-racking trip, though, to Iowa.... we drove the 5-ish hours to get to Cedar Falls, Iowa, we parked the car (my Camry) at the hotel, checked in, and went upstairs to change and get ready for the Wedding Ceremony.  After only about 45-50 mins, we came back down to the car, and it was dead!  Couldn't believe it.  We hitched a ride with these really nice people from Bloomington who were friends with Ted from Millikin.  And then we caught a ride back to the reception/hotel with Allan, Kathy, and Lindsey Hans.  Allan and Kathy Hans were kind enough to let us borrow their car Sunday morning so Carl and I could run to Walmart.  We bought a new battery and hoped and prayed that after Carl replaced the battery (in the hotel parking lot, no less), that the car would be good as new.  We knew that if it were something other than the battery, we would be spending an extra night in Iowa to get the car fixed on Monday.  Thank goodness the car started and was good to go after Carl replaced the battery.  He's so darned handy, isn't he?  :)  We only had 1 hiccup on the drive home... we stopped at an Arby's drive-thru in Iowa City for some lunch and the car stalled in the drive-thru.  I was so scared that we were going to be stranded... and in Hawkeye territory.  That's enough to frighten even Carl.  :)  I restarted the car and Carl looked at me and said, "Hurry up and order."  So I did just that and we just prayed that the car would make it home.  Alas, we got home safe and sound and the car has started okay ever since.  I'm so thankful, and I'm definitely going to have the car thoroughly checked out when I get my oil change next.

Tomorrow (Friday), my Mom is staying the night with us.  It's always fun when she comes and visits!  And this time, she's bringing curtains for the nursery.  :)  She has been working so hard on them, and I can't wait to see them.

Wednesday, July 27, 2011

27 Weeks

This past weekend was a really fun weekend!  My Mom came up to stay with us on Friday and Saturday night.

Friday night: We ate dinner at Portillos (and of course we got our favorite Portillos Chopped Salads - yum!) and then purchased Audrey's crib bedding and the inspiration for all the nursery decorations.  Isn't the bedding beautiful?!  I've had my eye on this bedding even before we knew we were having a girl.  I really love all the different colors in it.  And, believe it or not, it looks even better in person.
Then we stopped by JoAnn Fabrics to pick out fabric for curtains my Mom is going to make for the nursery.  We pulled a few different fabrics and brought samples home to decide what we wanted.  I'm really excited about the fabrics we chose.  I called and talked to Mom yesterday and she has already started on the curtains.  Can't wait to see them!
Saturday: We started off with breakfast (of course!), then onto JoAnn Fabrics to purchase the fabric and then on to Buy Buy Baby to purchase the crib and dresser (a very generous gift from Grandma and Grandpa Patton).  Thankfully, big Carl (Grandpa Larson) was in town and he was nice enough to help us transport the furniture from Buy Buy Baby to our house.  Unfortunately, both the dresser and the crib did not all fit in his truck so he had to take 2 trips.  What troopers!  And Mom and I had it rough... we waited in the gliders, "testing" them out, until they returned for the 2nd load.  I fell in love with one of the upholstered gliders, and am now set on upholstered vs. standard wood frame glider.  It really was a long day, and Mom and I both were exhausted by the end!  We ended the night watching the first few episodes of Friday Night Lights Season 1 on DVD.
Sunday: Mom left right after breakfast and Carl and I (mainly Carl) put together the crib.  Now we just have to move out the full mattress and bedding that our guests have used.  It's air mattresses from now on for our guests.  Here are the pics of the furniture.  I'm in love with it!
 Chief really likes the crib, too :)



How far along:  27 weeks and 3 days
Size of baby:  She is the size of a head of cauliflower.  She weighs almost 2 pounds and is about 14 1/2 inches in length.
Total weight gain:  22 pounds
Maternity clothes:  On Saturday, Mom went with me to Destination Maternity in Orland Park to shop for some maternity clothes.  Destination Maternity has both A Pea in the Pod and Motherhood Maternity brand clothes.  This was the 2nd time I had been in the store, and just like the 1st time I stayed in the back shopping the Motherhood Maternity brand.  A Pea in the Pod is much too expensive for me!  I found 3 dresses I like and 2 shirts.  And I purchased some maternity Spanx.  I love them!  They have a panel for the belly, so they're tight everywhere except my "baby bump".  I'm excited about my purchases!
Gender:  Still a girl!  This answer shouldn't change for the remaining 13 weeks.  :)
Movement:  She's still moving a lot.  When Mom and I were relaxing in the gliders at Buy Buy Baby, she must have been doing a flip or something because we could both see the left side of my belly moving like crazy.  I love feeling her, and she is an active little girl!
Sleep:  I've been sleeping really well lately.  I never thought I'd say it, but I'm officially used to sleeping on my side and find it pretty comfortable.  Don't get me wrong, I will probably switch back to sleeping on my stomach after pregnancy, but for now I am content on my side.
What I miss:  I really don't have any complaints this week.
Symptoms:  I didn't have heartburn all weekend or Monday and Tuesday of this week, but today I've had heartburn all day.  And it's weird, after I eat I get a tingling sensation right underneath my left rib cage.  Maybe this is indigestion or something related to heartburn too?  Friday night was the first time I ever felt it.

Tuesday, July 19, 2011

26 Weeks

So here I am 26 weeks along...
I realized I hadn't taken a pic since week 20, so I was due.  I just got back from yoga and asked Carl to take this pic as soon as I walked in the door... my only request was that he didn't get my face.  :)  

This past week, I've been really self-conscious.  A guy at work last week told me I "looked HUGE".  Thanks.  I blame it on the dress I was wearing.  We just laughed about it... he's definitely not the most tactful person, so it was almost expected.  Right after he said it, he back-tracked and said that I didn't look pregnant from my calves down.  Seriously he said that.  Thanks, dude.  At least I didn't have cankles that day, so that's good.  And then another coworker chimed in saying I've still got a long way to go and she didn't know where I was going to put the rest of the weight I had left to gain.  How can I not be self-conscious after that, right?  People just say the darnedest things to pregnant people!  I think I've gained 4 pounds over the past 2 weeks, so I really do need to start watching it so I don't "over-indulge".  I've really been trying to eat low-sodium and healthy, getting my fruits and vegetables.  I guess that's all I can control, right?  But, don't get me wrong, I allow myself to "cheat" quite often... much more often than before pregnancy.  You saw the blog post about the dessert table at the Engagement Party, right?  

I also missed 2 weeks of yoga, so I just wasn't feeling as strong and healthy.  I came back on Saturday morning and really noticed a difference in my overall mobility.  And tonight, I was back at my regular Tuesday-night class at the Community Wellness Center, and had some difficulty during the breathing exercises, forward folds, and balance poses.  I just modify a bit and do as much as I can.  I still get a really good workout, so I feel good about that.  Carl and I have been walking Chief as much as we can.  My favorite thing is to wake up early on a weekend and go for a long walk before it gets hot out.  It's been really hot lately.  In fact, this week is supposed to be in the 100's.  But so far I've been able to keep my swelling down and stay in the A/C as much as I can.   

Here is my "real" update:

How Far Along: 26 weeks and 2 days
Size of Baby:  She is almost 2 pounds now!  She's really growing and putting on baby fat.  She is now about 14 inches from head to heel, the size of an English hothouse cucumber.   
Total Weight Gain:  21.3 pounds
Maternity Clothes:  Almost all the clothes I wear are maternity clothes.  However, it's really strange that in my pic above, I'm not wearing any maternity clothes.  It's a regular tank top and t-shirt and regular yoga pants that I've had for about 8 years.  I find that I can't wear many regular shirts anymore just because they're not long enough.  And I'm thinking about retiring the dress I was wearing that instigated the "you're HUGE" comment. 
Gender:  GIRL!  And we are 100% sure about this now after having the 3D ultrasound this past weekend.
Movement:  I've noticed that she is really active on the weekends, and then she takes some time to rest on Monday and I don't feel her as much.  By today, Tuesday, she's really active again.  The ultrasound tech this weekend informed me that I have an anterior placenta, which means that I don't feel as much as if I didn't.  That seems crazy to me because I really do feel her a lot... and sometimes it's hard kicks!  I think that she's had hiccups often this week.  I'll feel a "bump" from the inside very regularly for a couple minutes at a time, as opposed to an irregular hard kick.  
Sleep:  Carl's been waking up really early for work (today, he was out the door by 5am!), and I woke up early yesterday to take Chief for a walk with him before he left for work.  This morning was just too early...I slept in instead.  But I hope to make that a regular thing where Carl and I walk Chief together before work.  We'll see.  I'm definitely becoming more of a morning person.  This past weekend, we were able to get a lot of sleep, which was awesome!  I even took a 2 hour nap on Saturday afternoon.  There's nothing better!
What I miss:  Having a "figure" and feeling cute.  Don't get me wrong, I think it is incredible what the human body is capable of.  I am in awe of all the changes that are happening to my body.  But I really am motivated to work really hard after Audrey is born to get in shape and feel fit and healthy.
Cravings:  I still love my fruit!  I have a home-made fruit and yogurt parfait for breakfast on the weekdays.  Yummo!  I've also been craving ice cream again, but instead of having ice cream every night I picked up some Frosted Flakes and I have a bowl of cereal.  That usually suffices.  I love Frosted Flakes!  And sadly, there's probably the same amount of sugar as in a bowl of ice cream.  It feels healthier though.  
Symptoms:  Heartburn heartburn heartburn!  It's worse on the weekdays for some reason.  Usually starts mid-morning, subsides a little when I eat lunch, then really gets bad in the afternoon.  I think I've gotten a bit used to it, though...as much as you can get used to heartburn.  I feel it most right in my throat... it's such a strong burn that it almost feels "cool" at some times.  I feel like I need to burp or thorow-up at some times just to relieve it.  Also, I've felt my belly get tight a little bit over the past week.  I don't know if this is Braxton Hicks?  It will get tight in my lower belly only, then at another time, it will get tight in my upper belly on just one side.  It's not regular and not intense, which is good.  I haven't been alarmed.  I probably will mention it to the doc next time I visit in 2 weeks.

That recaps my week 25 and gives a little insight as to how I'm feeling at week 26.  I'm excited that this weekend my Mom is coming up to visit.  We are going shopping for nursery furniture!  We are going to purchase the crib, dresser, and bedding this weekend.  We're also going to look for fabric for curtains so my Mom can start sewing.  My Mom is so talented and it's so nice that she is going to help with the nursery decor!  Hopefully we'll have a successful weekend!  I think we will. 


Sunday, July 17, 2011

3D Ultrasound

Yesterday, we went to The Belly Factory in Frankfort for a 3D Ultrasound.  In general, before it was our baby of course, 3D ultrasounds kinda freaked me out.  It's just kinda weird seeing the baby in the womb in so much detail.  But they say everything is different when it's your own child and sure enough, Carl and I decided we wanted to get this done to get a sneak peak at our little baby girl.

I'm so glad we went.  It was such a cool experience!  I was on my last day of my 25th week (basically 26 weeks) and we were able to see a lot of detail already!  She has a cute little profile and a little button nose.  What a doll already.  Of course I would be biased, though, right?  :)  She was really active for us, too, which was really exciting to watch.  The ultrasound tech told me that I have an anterior placenta meaning the placenta is between the outside of my belly and Audrey, so I don't feel as much movement as if the placenta were positioned somewhere else.  To me that's crazy because I still feel her a lot!  During the ultrasound, Audrey was moving all around and smiling and opening her mouth and sucking her thumb.  She would bring her arm up to her mouth and suck her thumb, then she would bring her arm down and rest her hand under her chin.  And her facial expressions - so funny!  She was even opening and closing her eyes, which was really cool.  She's only been able to do that for the past couple weeks I think.  Carl said, "I know we're naming her Audrey, but we better not be raising an actress!"  The ultrasound tech even said, "Man, she is an expressive baby!"  And we also got to confirm that she is in fact a girl.  If there was any doubt before, there is absolutely no doubt now!

Here are the pics of our little Audrey: