Showing posts with label preggs. Show all posts
Showing posts with label preggs. Show all posts

1.16.2012

about to POP + an incredible GIVEAWAY!! *giveaway closed*

Last weekend I was able to be photographed by the insanely talented Holly L. Robbins.  I can't say enough about how much these photographs mean to me.  When Holly sent them to me I was in tears looking through them as she captured so beautifully how I have felt being pregnant with this precious daughter of mine.  
As I go in to this very last day of being with child I am so thankful to have these photos to remember the special blessing I have had to bare a life.




***giveaway closed***

Now for the extremely exciting part for you guys!! 

Dear engaged friends
Dear singers who need headshots
Dear marrieds
Dear families
Dear preggie friends
Dear friends with new babies
Dear anyone who wants to have flawless beautiful photos,

To one lucky reader Holly is offering:

50% off any photo session with Holly L.Robbins Photography AND an additional 25% off of one of her amazing print collections!  That is an incredibly huge savings and awesome opportunity.  

Here is how to enter (leave separate comments for each entry):

1. You must be a follower of the Tunes & Spoons Blog
3. Comment on this post and leave your email address.

For additional entries:

1. Visit her website and tell me which kind of photo session you would like to have with her.
3. Post this giveaway to your blog or your facebook.

And because Holly is so wonderful she is also extending the 25% off of print collections to anyone who would like to book a photo session if you mention 'Tunes & Spoons' in your booking.  See why I love this lady so much.

This giveaway will be closed January 30th and the winner announced then. Good luck!

***anonymous comments are opened for this post only to those who do not have blogger accounts and would like to enter this giveaway. please leave your name and email as a way for us to contact you.***


The winner is comment number 34. Picked randomly by asking to husband, "Pick a number any number between 1 and 35."

Katy said...

I follow Holly's blog!

1.15.2012

tonight, i was that girl...


I swore I would never get to this point.

Tonight I went to grocery store for some serious necessities adorned in comfy gouchos and my husbands t-shirt.
I was passing by the milk and suddenly things were feeling a bit drafty.  I ran my hand down my very pregnant belly and when I reached the bottom, to my horror and complete oblivion, my very pregnant belly was exposing itself...with out my permission.
How could I be so completely unaware of my own body?
I quickly tried to snuff out the situation and cover up but it was too late, I had been spotted.
Face-palm.
You see, I have stretch marks.  I have one that I am particularly proud of.  It resides directly above my belly button (if it can still be called that nowadays).  It is an unmistakable lightening bolt.  A few weeks ago I was thinking, "How could pregnancy get any cooler?"  Then BAM...Harry Potter lightening bolt stretch mark on my tum.
After I procured all of the items on my list I went to the checkout and experienced my first REAL contraction.  Dang.  I had to completely stop walking and hold my shopping cart with a death grip.
Hold on baby girl...give your mama 2 more days.
I'm going to be a recluse and stay in til Tuesday, I can't be showing off my magical tummy marks anymore, I'm just not that girl.

1.03.2012

indian style

I guess one of the pros of having a breech babe are all of the extra ultrasounds you get to have.  I could never get tired of watching EJ do her thang in there.  Today she was just relaxing indian style with her bum down and her little baby hands up by her face.  We are still on a quest to turn this child.  I have been trying everything in the book.  
Want my list,my extremely effective list?
Although maybe I'm not one to be taking advice from...

round ligament massage
inversions (not too many of these, they make my head hurt...bad)
Webster adjustments (I go for round 3 this week)
cold stuff on baby's head
lots and lots of prayers and blessings
playing music near the exit...if you get my drift
a little bit of homemade acupressure (mr murphy squeezes my pinky toes and that is supposed to do something)
stretching and moving on my birthing ball to open up my hips more

What ever will be will be.  At least we know we have tried and tried.
Every day that passes is a day closer to us meeting our daughter.  And really that is all that matters. That idea keeps me going.  We are so excited.

12.29.2011

i must have a really comfy womb

like really soon.


Today we went to the ultrasound specialists and saw that Miss Evaleigh has a head full of hair, really likes to practice breathe in tha womb, and is an extreme contortionist(even the tech was impressed and equally dumbfounded as to how she got into the position she was in). 

All of those things make her a really cool baby.

After the ultrasound we decided that the Version, though possible, is not for us.  We really feel like if EJ is meant to turn then she will.  I am already being humbled by my child.  I remember when I was first starting to feel her move and kick, I was in awe that she had the freedom to move as she pleased.  Although she was a part of me and we were sharing the same body...I had no control over her.  That amazed me and I was proud of her for being her own little person.  I am really learning more about the gift of agency.   

We have date set for the c section and the idea of it is growing on me.  Thank you each and every one for the incredible outpouring of love, support, and kind words you shared with me yesterday.  I can't tell you how much each comment, phone call, text message, email, and facebook message meant to me.  I am astounded at the heart warming words I have received from friends and strangers alike.  I went to bed last night feeling much better and incredibly at peace.

Although, I may still ground Evaleigh for a few weeks after she is born for not listening to me tell her "TURN AROUND BABY!!!!" probably 1,000 times.  She is in trouble but I forgive her because I just must have a really comfy womb.

(Also a thank you to Nat the Fat Rat for our little feature yesterday.  I bet you are getting rather tired of Christmas trees.)

12.28.2011

not what we had planned.


Yesterday was a hard day.
I sat in my doctors office with my mother by my side and the doctor told me what I already knew...
EJ is still breech.
I struggled to hold back my tears and listened to her tell me the options.  
We basically have two choices:


try to turn her via External Cephalic Version (which we don't quite feel good about)
or
a C-section


My heart sank.


Having a c-section is everything I did not want in this birth.  Its not about having a scar and its not even about being scared to go through a surgery, although I'm not too excited about that either.  
It is about my right as a woman.
I was made for this.  My body was made for this.  I have always imagined the moment of bringing my sweet babies in to the world as the end result of laboring and working so hard to get their little bodies out of me.  I imagined being sweaty and being cheered on with my husband by my side and showing the world that I am a warrior woman who can do anything.  It is about years of dreaming of that moment only now to have it changed.  It is about using my body exactly the way my Heavenly Father intended for it to be used.
Now, that choice is not mine and I am sad.


After we left the doctor I was devastated, I cried on the phone to John for a bit.  When we got home I received a very timely tender mercy.
In my inbox came this miracle email:
"remember as long as your little one is healthy how she chooses to come in the world is on her and believe me it is good to be humbled right away, they have a mind of their own.  so my dear enjoy and keep us up north warm with your news and your life.  your other mom, diane"
I couldn't believe it.  This is the woman who saved my life when I was a near miss SIDS baby, I was only a couple months old when I stopped breathing.  She had no idea what had transpired that very day.  My heart was comforted and it was exactly what I needed to hear.  However Evaleigh CHOOSES to come is ok with me.  It is amazing to me how two souls can connect across hundreds of miles.  Diane, I can't thank you enough for your words.  I love you so.


So, I spent the rest of the evening reading stories of women who had positive experiences with c section births. This one gives me hope.  I am trying to reprogram my thinking and prepare for this experience in a whole new way.  I'm not sure how yet, but I am working on a change of heart.  
We go for an ultrasound tomorrow to see if the Version is really even an option for us based on EJ's size, the fluid, and the placement of the umbilical cord.  


If it is not...it looks like we will have our daughter in 2 weeks.

12.08.2011

i like big butts and i cannot lie...


We have decided to do something a little different.
Cloth diapers.
We tend to get some pretty mixed reactions when we tell people this.  Mostly people thinking we are crazy and saying, "Well good luck with that!"  and completely dismissing the idea.
Don't get me wrong, I don't think shaking poo off in to the toilet will be on the top of my list of favorite things to do BUTT (two t's on purpose...) when it comes to the saving cost of cloth vs. disposables...there is no comparison.

Well, actually there is and you can see it here or here.

Not to mention the environmental impact of disposables considering that from birth to potty training I will change Miss EJ an average of 6,840 times.  That's a lot of diapers folks...and a lot of poo.  Oh man, what have I gotten my self in to?

On Tuesday my sister and I went to The Natural Baby in Athens.  Rebecca Almy gave us a 2 hour Cloth Diapering consult and I now feel more confident than ever in our choice to cloth diaper.  I think it will come with its own challenges but I also think we will come out on top once we get in to a routine.

Here are a few of the things we are starting with.  
I'm not as educated on all of this as I would like to be but I am getting there. 
If any of you have personal experiences or thoughts on the matter I would love to hear them.  What worked for you?  What didn't?  I'm really open to any of the information that is out there, so share with me!
I can't wait to see Miss EJ's little bubbly hiney in these.

11.22.2011

milk glass

(on the Glenn Murphy Ranch)

I can't believe we have a little more than 8 weeks until we meet our little girl.  
Even with a ginormous belly, feet that sometimes resemble that of a hobbit, hellacious heartburn, and feeling a tiny person move inside me I still have moments where I think, "Wait, am I really pregnant?".  
The reality of all of this still seems so unreal.
I feel so lucky to have been given the gift of becoming a mother so freely.  While I know this is not the case for every one, John and I were able to get pregnant so easily and quickly.  That incredible blessing does not go unrealized in our prayers every single night.  
I am truly grateful for that blessing and my heart feels so full that we were granted this sacred responsibility and immense blessing to become parents.

I had a break down in the car on the way home from Florida this weekend.  At first I started to cry because my back right hip was hurting.  I had 3 pillows smushed in different shapes all around me trying to relieve the discomfort.  I began to cry and John reached over to try and massage it out.  He asked me, "Are you feeling nervous?" 
I wasn't, then with that question...I was.
Then I wasn't crying about my hip anymore.
I started thinking about how much our lives are going to change and the huge adjustment we have ahead of us.
I started hoping and hoping that I could be the best mother for our precious daughter.
I was nervous about labor and hoping that I'll be as brave as I plan to be.
Man, this pregnancy thing is a roller-coaster.
I don't even know if there is a word to describe all of these pre-mother emotions.  It is the most terrifying and glorious thing all wrapped up in one.  I want to protect her and keep her in my belly forever and at the same time I want to have her as soon as possible and show her the beauty of the world.
Ready or not, here she comes...and in her own time no doubt.

We get the crib tomorrow.  Her room is coming together bit by bit.



Is Thanksgiving really in 2 days?  How did that happen?

11.08.2011

grunt.......groan



We are twenty nine weeks (30 on Saturday).  
I can't believe I have been pregnant for 7 months.  
That's a long time.  
I am starting to get anxious to meet her.  I think going to the hospital made everything quite real.  I can't stop thinking about meeting her for this first time.  We are going for an elective 4d ultrasound today.  We will get to see a little peek at what her face looks like.  I kind of feel like we are cheating but it has been 2 and a half months since our last ultrasound and I am dying to see how she has grown.
I know I have...


Today I have piles of laundry to hang up and no motivation with which to start.  I am feeling quite overwhelmed with EJ's nursery as I am alone during the days most of the time.  I haven't really stepped foot in there in over a week.  Hopefully we can make some headway in there this weekend.  

I think I will try to finish reupholstering the couch in there today.  I CANNOT WAIT to show it off.  It was my great grandmother's couch, so stayed tuned for that project.  

Here is a little sneak peek.....



I better get my hiney in gear and work in there while I can still manage.  I miss the days where I didn't let out a large GRUNT or GROAN every time I leaned over to pick something up.  She is sitting so low I feel like I have a bowling ball in my tum.

P.S. Thank You to Spearmint Baby for our little feature.  We will be sure to send the finished Nursery Pictures your way!  

11.05.2011

whoa, those are really big rooms.


Today we went for our hospital tour to see where Miss EJ will be born.

Is it weird that I was more nervous about finding out and knowing where to park the car than the actual birth?  
I'm sure that will change...mostly because now we know where to park.

There were 3 other couples in our tour plus one really really excited grandmother.  I loved walking around in the group holding Mr. Murphy's hand.  All of us were first time moms and each of us had the pregnant waddle down like pros.  We were all accompanied by our spouses, or to be politically appropriate as the hospital must say, "our birthing support partner." Hah.

We were both thoroughly impressed with the largeness of the Labor and Delivery rooms.  Our tour guide was very informative.  
However, it is kind of weird to hear words like, "stirrups, circumcision, and that special 'v' word" in mixed company.
Although nothing was more awkward than when the tour guide showed us the BIRTHING MIRROR.  Talk about a moment you're not ready to experience with a crowd of strangers for the first time.  All of us were giggling like middle school children.  Suffice it to say that no hospital tour should conceivably be complete with out seeing the fully rotatable birthing mirror, that's what made it for me.

Well, in all seriousness the real magic happened when they took us up to the nursery.  The tour guide was jabbering on about visiting hours or some other helpful information and it was like everything around me melted away.  There, in the nursery, was a tiny newborn baby girl laying in her bassinet.  She was a beautiful pink and freshly out in to the world scrunching her tiny toes.  She opened her little eyes for a small moment only to squint and drift back to sleep.  
Tears welled up in my eyes and all I could think of was our EJ in her first moments of life as a perfect beautiful small baby that I made with the one I love the most.  I buried my head in Mr. Murphy's chest to hide my watery eyes and having a baby never seemed more real than in that moment.

I tuned back in somewhere around talking about birth certificates.
Today was wonderful.  
I have never felt more ready to park the car and have my life changed forever.

11.04.2011

dear pregnancy brain, you ruin everything.

Dear Pregnancy Brain,

You and I need to have a talk.

You see, the last week or so I have been building up husband's birthday surprise and doing a really great job of keeping it a secret.  Secrets can be hard for me, especially when its a gift.  I really thought I was going to make it this time.
Then you came along and ruined everything.

Remember yesterday when all I wanted to do was show Mr. Murphy a picture of my new bangs then you decided to butt in and be all, "BAM, it'd be a great idea to take a picture of yourself in the car and make sure to include his birthday present in the background."

That was rude.  

Can you stop making me stupid now?

Love,
Rachel








Happy Birthday to my sweet husband of 24 today!

I made Mr. Murphy promise me to still act surprised.
I was so close...SO close.

11.03.2011

time to bundle up that bump

It is so very fall here.
We have been putting off turning on the heat, but this morning when I woke up with a numb arm and the thermostat in our bedroom said 62 degrees...I finally gave in.  

I'm running that baby all day while I:

wash our sheets
plan for Mr. Murphy's birthday this weekend
look up ideas for our upcoming family photo shoot on The Glenn Murphy Ranch in the orange grove
listen to Christmas music
bask in the glow of the Holidays
and practice for my coaching with this guy for this weekend.





Its time to start wrapping this little bump up.  The sad thing is that I am learning that I no longer fit in to any of my old coats or winter clothes.  Do I have to buy a whole new pregnant winter wardrobe?

We are 29 weeks on Saturday.
Oh, how I love this little girl already.
I had a talk with her in the car last night on the way home from work.  It was just her and I in the car, mother and daughter.
I love the time we have together just the two of us because pretty soon I am going to have to share her with the rest of the world.
I'm not very good at sharing sometimes.
I like to tell her about the things we want to teach her and how many people love her so much already.  I tell her how lucky she is that she is coming to such a loving family.  I love knowing that she really can hear me and she is learning my voice and knows that I am her mother.  I can't wait to put a face to all of these little kicks.

10.25.2011

hello number 3

Well, hello there 3rd Trimester.
This is all going way too fast.
I'm pretty sure we just found out we were pregnant and then BAM, I can now feel a tiny human moving around in my tum.

I could literally lay in bed all day and wait for EJ to kick me.  It is the thing that brings me the most joy at this time.  Its weird, I remember waiting and waiting and waiting to start feeling those little movements and now I can't remember a time when I couldn't feel her.  It is unlike any other feeling in the world.  I love knowing that I am her home right now.


*I am finally back up to my pre-pregnancy weight from all that I lost in the beginning.  I wasn't super sick or anything, I just had a massive aversion to sugar.  Now I could sit and eat a whole thing of orange cinnamon rolls by myself.  And I do.
*I only have one little stretch mark on the left side of my tum.
*The happy trail is still enlarging its borders.
*The right side of my lower back is beginning to give me quite a bit of trouble.  So long sweet sleep.  At least I have Mr. Murphy to rub my head and tell me to take 3 deeps breaths and relax my body from the top of my head to the tips of my toes.  I tell ya, this man is going to be a natural by my side at the birth of our baby.
*My pregnancy brain gets worse by the day.
*The boobs are are more out of control than ever.  I broke a size 40E new bra the other day.  I went to put it on for the first time and it just snapped in half like a twig...these things cannot be contained.
*Sneezing is pretty dangerous in these parts.  Bad things happen.
*Feeling EJ move is great.  Watching Mr. Murphy feel her is even better.  The other night we were laying in bed and he was resting his hand on my belly while we were having our night time conversation.  EJ rolled to a spot in my belly and it got really hard where she was.  He looked at me with huge eyes and said, "Thats her!!! I can feel our daughter, its like I'm holding her!"  I love his excitement for this baby girl.  He is going to be a stellar daddy.  (And quite protective I might add.  He bought a sword this weekend which no doubt will be used to ward off future boyfriends.  I love my nerdy husband)


9.21.2011

being pregs

(me and my tuttah)


Why I love being pregs:

There is really a real tiny little human person inside of me, really people...thats mind-blowing

I feel beautiful

Mr. Murphy affectionately calls me the Pregnant Princess.  It never gets old

The naps.....OH the naps!

That glow that everyone talks about, I feel it on the inside and it makes me happy


Yesterday I got free ice-cream from these random precious black girls at work.  The conversation went something like this:
me: "Ooooo girl, that ice-cream looks REAL good."
girl 1:"Oh, it was for free.  Listen up, if you go to Burger King and get a value meal, they'll just give it to you."
me: "Hey now, don't tempt a pregnant woman."
girl 2:"She just said 'Don't tempt a pregnant woman'. Haaaaa"
girl 1: "You know what?  I have an extra one in the car, let me go get it for you."
girl 2:"Consider it an early baby shower gift."
I hope I get more baby shower gifts like this...really. 

I get extra back rubs. Sometimes really special ones with Love Spell. :)

People touch my belly, most women would complain about this but it's one of my favorite parts.

My hair is growing leaps and bounds, thanks baby EJ.

I haven't had PMS in almost 6 months.

I love feeling our daughter move and squirm. It's magic and I've never felt so alive.

I get random packages from sweet friends filled with beautiful baby girl clothes. (Thanks Kalene!)

Mr. Murphy talks to EJ and tells her goodbye through my tummy every-time I leave the house.

I finally have some thing to blame my emotional crying fests on...preggy hormones are the bomb, no?


Mr. Murphy and I get to try cool things together like Hypnobirthing.  It probably would have gone a bit better last night if I hadn't burst into laughter 5 minutes in to the session.  Poor hubs was giving it a real shot for me and I was the one who ruined it with my giggling...sorry dear, lets give it another go.



9.19.2011

22.





22 weeks
We are moving right along.
I feel like time is speeding up in a way.
Fall is most certainly making an appearance outside of our house.
I am loving every second of it.

This Friday after hubs and I went to the temple together, we went out for sushi and then got our own makings for hot chocolate.
It was a date night for the books for sure, but it was simple.  It felt like we were dating again.  We giggled and talked the whole time.
We went home, put on sweat pants, and snuggled up in bed and watched The Cosby's.  
I love simple nights like that.

22 weeks has brought some amazing feelings.
I am only just now starting to feel our daughter kick...by far one of the most indescribable things I have ever experienced.
Our little girl must love music just like us because every time I have felt her move it has been while listening to music.
Th other night we were playing opera for her on my iPhone and she went to town kicking and moving.
This past Thursday I was in Atlanta recording a CD with the HVP and she was loving the sounds and started kicking then too during our recording session.
Then this Saturday we had a girls night over at my house and my friend Lauren started to play Avett Brothers on the piano and then yet again...she started kicking.

I cherish every single one of those movements.
I love feeling her move inside of me.  I can't believe that I am providing the home for our daughter to form and grow until she is ready to enter this world.
Often times I look so forward to the day when she gets here but then I stop and realize, "Wait, she IS already here!"
My mother always says to me that I should enjoy every stage of being pregnant and being a mother.  She tells me never to say, "I can't wait til..."  
Because I should live each moment in gratitude for the present.


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