Pink or Blue...We'll know soon!

So at this point, I thought I'd be posting pictures of the finished painting project. But alas, the painters are still here, still working. I'm hoping this is their last day so I can put the house back together again, but we'll see. :) More on that at a later time I suppose!

So lets talk about the baby!! A week from today we'll (fingers crossed!) be able to tell if our sweet Charfish is a girl or boy. I'm so excited to know if we'll have a son or daughter...it seems like a big milestone. I'm starting to notice movement in my belly too, and it is the coolest feeling ever. Its usually when I am still, or when Lola is on my lap, I feel little nudges or "bubbles." I love it! Before I get into the pros and cons of girl or boy, most of all what Chach and I want is a HEALTHY baby. This will be the first time we'll have seen the baby, and mostly I just want my child to have like, you know, one head, two hands, etc. I'm more concerned that everything looks ok and we pray for a healthy baby! The Chach and I have discussed, and neither of us have a gender preference. We know we'll just love the baby the same either way no matter what Charfish is. But still, I'll go into each: team pink or team blue (hehe) (BTW I picked out names long before I was pregnant, informed the husband and he was on board!)

Think Pink: aka Charlotte Mary Grimes
For a girly girl like myself, the benefits of having a girl are a no brainer! If you've seen pictures from my wedding, you know that I love pink! It would be amazing to dress up a little princess and all those fun things that go with it. (Of course, it'd be my luck that I'd have a girl, tell her to get out her tutu and she'd be ready for softball practice or something haha). I think I picked the name Charlotte, from surprisingly that J-Lo movie "Monster in Law" haha. J-Lo's character was named Charlotte and they called her Charlie, and I thought, how cute! If our first born is a girl, she can still carry on the "Charles" tradition in the Grimes family in a feminine way. Plus I just love the name....and don't forget Sex and The City Charlotte, she was the sweetest one! The middle name Mary is for both of our moms who are named Mary. :)

True blue: aka Charles Fisher Grimes
Oh but to have a sweet boy! There is something about a first born son. To see your husband teaching your boy things like, fishing! haha Since I grew up dancing, it would be fun to do all the different stuff, like sports teams etc. And also Lola would still be the "princess" haha. My husband is the fifth Charles Grimes in his family (all different middle names) so we inevitably have to use the first name Charles, he would be the sixth one! Chach's family actually calls him by his middle name Todd, (he switched to Charley when he was younger haha). So we would call our baby boy Fisher. If he doesn't like it, there is always Charles. I got the name Fisher from Whitney actually, and we just fell in love with it. I know its different, and most people ask if its a family name, but since my dad loves fishing, my husband loves fishing, it just seemed to fit. I also think I'll have an easier time with a boy nursery, because I found lots of cute fish stuff. All the girl nursery stuff I like is too expensive, of course. :)

So a week from today this mystery will hopefully be solved, if Charfish isn't shy. I've gone back and forth on having a "feeling". Starting out, I thought boy for sure, then I kept having girl dreams. Now I'm more leaning towards boy again. But who knows, I guess it could be twins!

I'm going to attempt to post a poll, so please vote! And again...here's hoping for a healthy bambino. :)

The 3 Week Countdown Begins!

Today I had my routine every 4 weeks checkup...and so far everything looks good! The baby's heartrate was around the 150's, and still so amazing to hear. The most exciting part of the whole visit though was scheduling the BIG ULTRASOUND. So in 3 weeks we will finally get to see the baby, and determine (fingers crossed) if Charfish is either a Charlotte or a Fisher!! Wahoo! We will be thrilled either way, and of course what we want the most is a healthy baby. :)

In other news, I have started my prenatal fitness classes. I am going to water aerobics twice a week and prenatal yoga once a week. I have done the water classes twice and really enjoyed them. I am looking forward to starting yoga tomorrow, especially since my sweet neighbor teaches the class. Its nice being around other prego's and getting to move. I am also teaching dance one night a week, and can already tell the difference my big ole belly makes! Touching my toes is getting harder and harder haha.

Other than trying to get my fat arse in gear, we are working on updating the house a little bit. My decorator Whitney helped pick out some paint for us and we are having some rooms painted next week. I will be running a lot of fans and errands during this time haha. I'm also testing my cooking skills since I have more free time, and hope I don't have any disasters. Today I put a dirty glass in a cabinet instead of the dishwasher. I'm claiming baby brain!

My 5 & 1/2 month Summer Break

Since we found out that there is a baby on board, Charley and I have been contemplating on what to do with my work situation. We have talked, prayed, looked at finances, consulted family and friends, and finally came to a decision!

For the past two years, I have worked in the public school system as a dance teacher in a high school. The program has an amazing theatre academy, and I found the opportunity to use both my college major (dance) and minor (theatre) at a full time level. Before this job, I was working at an event planning facility (which I LOVED) and also teaching dance at night. But working two jobs was exhausting as well. Teaching full time seemed to be a good solution! Since I don't have an education degree, I had to go back and take a couple of education classes to work on a teaching certificate. Overall, I found teaching high school to be one of the absolute hardest things in the world, and also the most rewarding. The theatre program like I said is amazing, but it takes long hours to produce amazing work. I worked over 6o hours every week and on most weekends, and found myself to be working just as much as I was before. However, I did get many opportunities to grow professionally as a choreographer which I will always be so thankful for. In fact, my choreography will be featured in Scotland this summer. I also found that the challenges of working with unruly teenagers gave me part of what I had been missing in my life for so long....a backbone! I know that will come in handy as a new parent!

So in conclusion, we decided that we could not put a newborn in daycare till 6:30pm everyday. I am giving up some things, but when it comes down to it, I know now I will always choose to be with my child first. I am also very grateful to have the choice! My husband is wonderful and supportive and will be a great provider.

School is now over and this will be the longest I have not worked, ever. I have a huge lists of projects lined up now, but I am also looking forward to this last bit of quiet and relaxing time left in my life haha. Its strange, since high school...I have always been so busy,and now I appreciate this "vacation." My new job will be here before we know it, come November!

Second Trimester is here!

Memorial Day weekend always brings good things....a day off work, time with family, etc. Well this year it brought all those things, PLUS the official start of my second trimester! I have been looking forward to this trimester, because people say its when you feel the best. And I have been noticing a gradual change in the past week or so with my energy increasing. However, today I officially felt fantastic. Although...it probably had to do with the fact that I had plenty of rest in the three days prior and I didn't have to go to work! :)

We spent the weekend down at our lakehouse with my parents. (Charley and I bought a lakehouse on Lay Lake last October and it has quickly become our lovely little retreat. He loves the fishing....Lola and I enjoy the view and time to relax.) It was so nice being able to spend time with my folks. Mom and I got caught up on all our magazines, scrapbooked, napped, and cooked while the guys fished the whole time. We also enjoyed grilling out and making very rich homemade ice cream. Of course I couldn't enjoy drinking on the deck with them. ;)

Today the sun came out for the majority of the afternoon and I got a chance to finally put some color on the paleness that my skin has become. I have quickly realized that a pregnant tan = sun only on the front part of your body since its hard to lay on one's stomach. However I figure this is better than nothing!

My most proud moment of the weekend occurred today when my sweet Lola SWAM in the lake! Chach walked her along the shore so she could cool off, and LO and behold, she ended up on her own free will swimming to me as I sat on the dock. Oh big mama was so proud! (Keep in mind she is a small dog who stays indoors all day haha).

I don't have any pictures from the weekend, so I shall post some general ones of our lakehouse!

Country Living

The View

The Best Sound in the World

We had our 12 week appointment today and we got to hear the heartbeat! It was such a huge relief, because they tried to hear it with the doppler at 9 weeks and no luck. The doctor reassured me that was perfectly normal, but at the time I was still dissapointed and wanted very badly to have some kind of auditory or visual confirmation (besides my growing belly/face/arse and the vomit) that el bambino was doing good.

So today the nurse put the doppler back on and after a minute of exploration, she said she found it. It took me a minute to realize that the quick little drum sound was it, and then I couldn't stop grinning. (I had a nightmare last night that they couldn't find it again and that something was wrong with the placenta and baby, but thankfully that dream didn't come true!) Baby's heart rate was 172 beats per minute and Chach and I enjoyed listening to it for a brief time, until the nurse mentioned that if our heart was beating that fast we'd be dead. So I started laughing and it messed up the doppler haha. Anyhow, its a great relief knowing little peanut is doing well and now I can officially annouce to the general population that my ego is prego!

Baby's First Blog

Well we are new to blogging and are hoping this will be an avenue to keep everyone updated on the progress of Baby G! I found out I was pregnant around mid-March and we are absolutely thrilled. We decided to keep my bun in the oven news to just family and close friends until we are out of the delicate stage. I am currently 12 weeks and am praying they can find the heartbeat at my appointment next Tuesday.

First trimester has been quite the experience! I felt great at first, but soon around 6-7 weeks my dear friend nausea came to visit. Around 8 weeks, I was making nightly sacrifices to the porcelain god. In addition to feeling exhausted and having headaches, I soon had to realize that my body wouldn't let me push it to the limit anymore. Example, I work long hours as a school teacher and choreographer for the theatre department. I soon realized that having rehearsal till 7pm, then going to the grocery store afterwards, wouldn't be acceptable to my dear little lamb as I stood puking into the Publix parking lot. Adjustments made, and my sweet husband has been great to step in and help out. I switched my prenatal around 10 weeks, and it has made a great difference in the way I feel! I thought I was out of the vomiting woods until the night before last when baby Charfish reminded me that all was well as I puked into the driveway coming home from a dress rehearsal.

I definitely have a baby bump and feel like I have had one from day one. I think most of this is my "protective fat layer" as I wasn't at my ideal weight when I got "knocked up." :) I probably won't be posting too many prego pics because I already feel like the Michelin Man. However, I LOVE having a bump and seeing it grow! Eating carbs has been one of the things that combated my nausea....so I'm sure my weight gain has been a little far ahead of the curve. Example, last Thursday night's dinner consisted of waffles and garlic cheese bread, as I sat watching the movie Miss Congeniality and teared up at the end. Dang hormones. Don't worry though, baby G has been getting nutrients via V8 and lots of fruit cups.

As I enter this last week of the trimester, I know both Chach and I are looking forward to myself feeling more normal! I apologize in advance if I have scared any non mothers or squeamish folk with my sickness stories, but hey hopefully this is the last you'll have to hear about them! I hope I don't sound like I'm complaining, because I would go through much worse to make sure this sweet pea comes into the world safe and sound. We feel so blessed and are so excited about what's in store!!!