I hate our "new normal"

 Why not jump back to this old blog with something pandemic related? I don't know if it will be a permanent return or just a short stint, but it is what it is.

Also, I hate the word hate. It's a strong word, but it doesn't typically convey just how strong our feelings truly are. Alas, hate is the best word to use when I think about how our lives have changed as of late.

Here's the thing...

I teach high schoolers. I love my job. And while I love what I do, I hate our "new normal".
I hate that my students have to sit six feet apart.
I hate that we can't do group activities the same way we used to.
I hate that we have to wear masks when I'm sitting next to a student working one-on-one.

BUT

I am glad to be back with my students.
I am happy to see their foreheads and smiling eyes.
I am grateful to teach in a small school where we are able to remain face-to-face, while social distancing.
I am proud of my students for showing up and working hard to reach graduation.

And isn't that all we really want? Don't we all want to be successful and work toward our dreams? I want to be remembered as someone who cared for her people--family and students alike. I want to work toward my dreams and enjoy my journey along the way. I want my people to know that I truly want the best for them--but boy oh boy, this "new normal" is killing my vibe.

This is my attempt to journal my way through this pandemic and although we are already six months in, there must be some sort of value to be found in it. If not, then it's just for my sanity. And that's okay too.

And Then There Were Four

Solveig arrived on April 25, 2019! Only 2 days after her due date. And she is perfect!

She's now four months old and loving life...so much that sleep has been rough. Wish us luck!

It's Baby Month!

April is here and that means baby is right around the corner. And no...I'm not playing around like with Lew. Yes he was due the 24th and was born on the 2nd, but this one will be here by the end of the month. Honest.

That being said, here's a little update:

Weeks:  37! Full term, baby!

Feeling: Lots of hip pain. And I'm exhausted. Last night Kyle told me that I had huge bags under my eyes. Well...that's because I'm working til the end this time around. I don't have summer break to nap my days away this time. HAH.

Cravings: None. Seriously. It's so weird.

Aversions: Again...not really anything. I'm not really loving or hating anything these days.

Moving: Verrryyy slowly. The chiropractor has helped, but baby is so large that there's not much adjusting my chiro can do. So we take everything a day at a time.

Eating: A little of everything...probably more sweets than I should. And I've never been a big fan of seafood, but my brother-in-law made shrimp scampi last week...and I couldn't get enough.

Wearing: Always maternity pants or leggings...leggings are preferred. Mostly maternity tops. ALWAYS my Blanqi tank top. And alternating between my Birkenstocks and my new Crocs.

Sleeping: Not very well. Last night there was a knee or a shin or something poking me most of the night. And I'm currently in a mountain of pillows...so Kyle can barely see me.

Exercising: I'm starting to walk a little more. If for no other reason than to start feeling better and wanting to be out enjoying the fresh air.

Size: Canary Melon

Movement: TONS of huge movements. Baby is either shoving his/her knees into my side or flipping from side to side. It's wild in there.

Gender: Still unknown. :) We are excited to find out in just a few weeks!

Hospital bag: PACKED and PACKED! Kyle still has his to pack, but that's something he can deal with.

Misc: We have to get the car seat installed and have the Tahoe detailed and we should be good to go!

What are some last minute words of wisdom for a 2nd time mom? I'm open to all suggestions!!

Happy Tuesday!

Here's 37 weeks with Lew 

32 Weeks and Food.

It's here...32 weeks and the last two months! I'm not sure how that can be the case, but here we are and hopefully the weather doesn't stretch these eight weeks into feeling like 18.

And with that...I've been wanting all of the carbs and citrus. So it's great that I live in the Midwest where the only good fruit we can get this time of year is citrus. And since I love to bake, these bagels  have been on the ready at our house.

But these bagels have been so tasty. I made them on Friday before we left for the weekend and I would eat one every day. And since I have no shame, I'm going to share some pictures...proud bagel momma, over here.

          

        The boiling process.                          And the cinnamon sugar bagels, pre oven.

And my fav--everything.

And the toppings, of course.

These bagels have been a hit at our house. Lew devoured one last night right before bed and Kyle wants to make bagel sandwiches now. So that's what we'll be prepping before baby gets here, I do believe.

On that note, Bean Sprout is probably just shy of 4 lbs and approximately the size of a cantaloupe. 

 

Should you ever find yourself in Minneapolis with time on your hands, we had some great food and saw some awesome art!

Eggy's Diner - Minneapolis (I had a fantastic burger! And it was so filling)

  

The MIA is one of my favorite places to go. It's free and houses hours of art for you to peruse. Right now the special exhibit is Egypt's Sunken Cities. We didn't see it, but it looked impressive.

Mr. Pig Suff BBQ is in Shakopee and we got the dinner for 2. Boy was it tasty. Plus our company was pretty great too. 

So, we're home from our little babymoon and the plan is to hunker down and stay cozy until baby gets here. If you need us we'll be baking, doing laundry, and finishing a few house projects.

Happy Wednesday!

A Little Update | 30 Weeks

I have yet to do an update on #beansprout, but I figured now was a good time to do so! We're just shy of 10 weeks out and boy oh boy am I ready for this snow to melt. We've been hammered over and over with snow and cold for the last month and it's making this pregnancy a lot harder than it needs to be. But, all in good time, right?

So, here we are. 30 weeks.

Bean Sprout on L and Lewis on R.

  

Feeling: I'm feeling ok. Starting to feel large and my hips are definitely starting to hurt more. But with over 2 months to go, I can't complain quite yet.

Cravings: I've not had any true cravings this time around. With Lew, I was always craving fruit...watermelon, citrus, pineapple, etc. This time, a lot of things taste good, but nothing that I have to have. Well...except grape juice.

Aversions: With Lew, I had a ton of aversions...especially in the 1st trimester. I couldn't handle coffee or any type of veggie. This time around, my coffee aversion was much shorter and I've not disliked most of the foods I normally like. So, not much new on that front.

Moving: Slowly! A few coworkers and a student definitely commented yesterday on the fact that I'm now waddling. So...I guess my spirit animal for the foreseeable future is a penguin.

Eating: Most things. I'm trying to stay away from lots of unnatural carbs...sugars, super processed grains and flours...I did fail my 1 hour glucose test again...so that's the impetus for that cut. But it's orange and grapefruit season, so we're stocked up on those in our house.

Wearing: Mostly maternity clothes. Many of my flowy tops still fit, albeit a lot shorter, but they fit. And all of my cardigans will make the journey through to the end. But I have been living in my Blanqi tank and my Target maternity leggings. I'm still powering through with shoes that need to be tied. Mostly because our snow situation is obscene. But you better believe, as soon as it warms up a little bit, I'm pulling out my Birkenstocks!

Sleeping: Hard! Unless I need to get up to go to the bathroom. But my sleep this time around has been much better because of my Snoogle pillow.

Exercising: Not as much as I should. I've been doing some prenatal yoga and that has helped with my hips and back. However, grad school has been a bit crazy...so that's kept me from exercising as much as I should.

Size: Baby is the size of a head of cabbage.

Movement: S/He is suuuper wiggly. Last night, Bean Sprout was bouncing all over and Kyle could only laugh.

Gender: Unknown. We decided to wait again and I'm getting more antsy than last time around...probably because I really have no clue with this one.

Nursery: Babe will be sleeping in our room until s/he is sleeping through the night. After that, Bean Sprout will move into Lew's room. Hopefully big bro won't constantly be waking the little up! AND...we've got a few decorations for baby's portion of our room. So stay tuned for that! I'm hoping to have the cradle area close to done this weekend. I'll be sharing a new favorite shop too!

Hospital bags: Half way there! Babe's bag is packed. Once the car seat is installed, I'll add the final blanket to the pile. But I still haven't packed mine. I know there's plenty of time, but once mine is packed, some of those clothes I won't be able to wear again...so I'll wait. :)

Misc: Mmm...I think that's about it! Lewis has been on the fence about a brother or sister until lately. Now if someone asks, he'll say he wants a sister. So...only time will tell!

If you have kids, did you wait to find out or did you need to know right away??

Happy Wednesday!

 

Hospital Bag v. 2

A friend asked Kyle the other day what to pack in your hospital bag in prep for baby. Since we're officially in the third trimester (WHAAAT??), I thought I'd give a list of what I'm planning to bring and what are maybes. And since I didn't write one last time, I only have my memory to go by. :)

For baby
His/her own bag: Because Lewis ended up in the NICU for a week and I'm an over-packer to the max, I'm planning to bring a bag for baby. Plus there will also be extra room for the diapers and extras that come home with us.

Going home outfit: Since we don't know baby's gender, I'm bringing one gender neutral outfit to put on baby to head home. And I'll bring a cute bow in case we have a girl. :) I found these super cute sweats in mustard!

Onesies/Sleepers: I'm planning on having 2 onesies (one neutral, one girl) and two sleepers (both neutral). Our hospital gives out a onesie with their logo on it to all babies. I still have Lewis's and it's soooo tiny!

And this cuuuuteeee sleeper to match the mustard sweats.

Blanket: I have a rainbow blanket for our rainbow baby at home. So I'm planning to bring that to tuck around baby in the car seat for coming home. 

*And that's about it for baby. S/he really won't need much else. The hospital provides diapers and wipes and pacis.

For momma
Comfy clothes: Last time, I lived in the hospital gown until I was mobile enough to get up by myself after my C-section. This time, I am planning on feeling more like a human much sooner. So, comfy yoga pants are a must in case I need another C-section.

Nursing bra & tank top: I loved my Bravada bras and my Gilligan & O'Malley nursing camis from Target last time. If you're looking for camis, run because they're on sale right now!

Slippers: I'm really not a fan of socks, esp the grippy socks at the hospital, so my slippers will make their way into my bag as well. Depending on how convincing I am, I might have Kyle buy me a new pair to come home to.

Breast pump & Haakaa: I'm planning to nurse again this time, so I plan to ask my dr to write me a prescription for a pump to have on hand for when baby arrives. Last time I had to wait until the next day to get my pump. That was a little bit of a pain. The haakaa is awesome...it's a manual pump that collects milk when you're nursing on the opposite side. My only complaint from last time is that I didn't know have it from day 1!

Extra long phone chargers: I was reading another blog and she reminded me of how far away the outlets are from the hospital beds. So, here are the Android chargers I'm planning to get. If you're looking for iPhone, these are a great option and they come in varying lengths.

My own pillow: It was so nice to have my own pillow that was already formed to me. BUT if you do bring your own pillow, don't have a plain white pillow case. The hospital MIGHT mistake it for theirs.

Toiletries: I have this nifty hanging organizer from Thirty-One that rocks!
Shampoo & Conditioner: While I'm trying to train my hair to not need to be washed that often, I'm also a realist and recognize that I'll feel better when my hair is washed with my own shampoo & conditioner.

Toothpaste & toothbrush: Travel sized isn't necessary, but they do take up less space.

Deodorant: Uh...duh. You'll sweat.

Essential oils: I have a Thieves roller that will help me feel better about all of the germs and a lavender roller that will help me relax.

Coconut oil: I packaged some coconut oil in a 4 oz jelly jar that I will bring along to use in place of lanolin. There are two reasons behind this...one, I'm cheap and I don't want to spend the money on lanolin (even though it's not terribly expensive), and two, I'm lazy and don't want to make an extra stop when I already have coconut oil at home.

Chapstick: I'm addicted to my chapstick and if I lose one, it's like this meme over and over.

Nursing pads: Because they're helpful.

Prenatals: Over the last 5 years, I've noticed that taking prenatals have really helped me feel better. More importantly, they helped out a lot when I was nursing Lewis.


For daddio
Comfy, soft clothes: More than likely, Dad will be snuggling baby quite a bit too. So make sure to have something comfy for him to lounge in, but soft enough that it doesn't chafe baby's delicate skin.

LOTS of Snacks: I ate some of the snacks that we had packed, but because my labor was so long (30+ hours), Kyle felt like he couldn't really leave to eat. The snacks came in handy during labor and when the kitchen was closed. But our hospital is awesome and they have hospitality rooms that are stocked with sandwiches, yogurt, string cheese, etc for when the kitchen is closed and mom or dad need a snack.

Long phone charger: Again, same as for mom. The outlets are placed obnoxiously far away.

His toiletries: Idk what all he wants in there, but he can pack them. :)

Helpful, but not necessary

Headphones: I spent a lot of time up pumping last time and I anticipate a lot of time pumping, nursing, or awake with a baby this time. So headphones might make my list of "to bring" items so that I can watch TV without disturbing Kyle.

Huge water bottle: Some hospitals give new moms a huge thermos or insulated water bottle with their logo on it, but ours doesn't. So if I want something of my own, I might pack one.

Do any other mommas have some input? Drop your comments and suggestions below! I'm sure I'm missing something, so I'll update it when I come up with it.

How many times have I done this?

So, in all seriousness. How many times have I tried to jump back on the bandwagon and be consistent with my blogging? I mean, I've had a blog for the better part of the last decade. So there's your ballpark timeframe.

And it really is so hard to stay consistent. I wanted to keep blogging last spring after we lost our first little baby. But it was so hard to keep up with all that I wanted to say and who I wanted to say it to. Then I started grad school at the same time and I got overwhelmed. That sense of being overwhelmed hasn't gone away, but it's just looking a little different these days.

After that semester, I really wanted to share our news about the newest little babe on the way. But when we lost that one on Mother's Day, I decided that I needed to take the summer to focus on our family and homework. And before I knew it, we were back to school and pregnant again. Praying all the while that this one would stick.

Here's to a new year. I'd love it if you'd stick around, but I can't make any promises about being consistent with my posting here. Grad school is still looming and with my maternity leave drawing neigh, things are looking a little overwhelming again. But God is good and busy isn't bad, especially when it's this kind of busy.

This year, I'm working toward "being present" in everything that I do. I'm not sure what that might look like, but I do know that it means saying "no" to more and focusing my attention more on what and who is in front of me.

For now, I'll leave you with a comparison picture. The first is from 10 weeks with Bean Sprout and the second is from today, at 26 weeks. Hello, (almost) end of 2nd trimester!

   

 

What are you working on this year?

I'd love it if you shared in the

comments.