Baby Thydean's 3d/4d Ultrasound Appt #1

Last night we went and had our first 3d/4d ultrasound appointment! We went to Enlightened 4D Imaging and Photography in Bloomington, MN. The staff was so nice and friendly. One of the best parts of this ultrasound is that I did NOT have to have a full bladder to get quality pics. If you've had ultrasounds done and know that you have to drink like 32oz of water within an hour of your appointment - you know how much of a relief this is. The ultrasound room is nice and big and I got to lay on a huge (like full/queen size) bed that is extremely comfortable. The back adjusted up and down so I could easily see the 13' projector screen in front of me. There is a chair next to the bed for the hubby to sit in. There is also a couch and some other chairs so if you have family/friends with they can be comfy too! We will have some of our family with next time so it's nice to know they will be sitting comfortably.

We probably had about 35-40 minutes of full ultrasound time with our baby girl (yep, confirmed it's still a girl!). We got 27 pictures of her and he printed out 7-8 of the really good pics. We also got a cd with all of the pics on it so we can upload them on any site, email to friends, make more copies - pretty cool and a DVD with the pics set to music (haven't checked that out yet)! He explained so much to us on what was going on in there and checked out all of the vitals and explained lots of stuff to us. He also said that I have posterior placenta which explains why I have been feeling the baby moving so much! I don't mind now, but down the line that movement could get really painful/annoying, haha!

Anyways, lets get onto the fun stuff and what you all want to see...the pics!

She looks so happy

Cute little legs and arms - looks like mama needs to eat more ;)

This is Chris's favorite picture

Looks like she's taking a little nap

So sweet and innocent

I can't hear you - This is my favorite picture

I'm hungry, when's dinner?

This was such a fun experience for us and I'm already counting down the days until our next appointment. We should get more definition in the pics by then since the baby will be more plump. Before we left we got a ton of stuff to take home with us. There are a couple different small coolers with reusable ice packs in them for bottles, a diaper/wipes travel holder, formula samples, bottles, nipples, tons of coupons for diapers/wipes/laundry detergent/birth annoucements/photobooks/carseat covers/formula, books on nursing and what parents need to know. Obviously all of this is given to them to distribute to their customers on the company's behalf, but Chris and I LOVE anything free! Plus the tote and it's matching bags are pretty cute :)



The bag of stuff and the diaper caddy/orgainzer

 

What's inside!

If you have any questions on my experience, feel free to ask! I'm not being compensated nor was I asked to do a review of this company. This is completely my opinion and I just wanted to share my experience in case anyone may be interested in getting an ultrasound done there.

After our appointment, we headed downtown and got dinner at The Melting Pot. Chris got to indulge in our 2 drinks that were included with our dinner, so he upgraded to Long Island Teas instead of wine. I was pretty jealous!! The food was amazing and we skipped dessert since we were so full. The waitress nicely brought us out a free slice of cheesecake for us to split.

Waiting for the cheese to melt, don't mind my crazy eyes - I need to touch them up a little!

We got home and talked about how much fun our evening was, chowed down some of the chocolates Chris got me for my b-day and I stayed up until 11. I'm pretty tired today...it's gonna be a long one!

Happy Birthday to Me!



Not really, but this picture cracks me up every time I see/think of it!

I am so pumped for this day to finally be here! I woke up at 3:30 (not sure if I was just that excited or I just woke up) and watched TV while everyone else was sleeping soundly. I tore opened my presents at 5:30 while in bed. I thought that one of them may come in handy tonight as a gift card for the ultrasound place so I just needed to open it. (Thanks M-I-L!!).

I have to work all day, but that's ok cuz tonight is when the fun starts. I'm heading out a little bit early (stayed late last night) to go home and pick up Chris so we can go to our first of two 3d/4d ultrasound appointments. I have been waiting for this day to get here for a little over a month and I'm super excited about it! We should be getting the pictures on a CD and a DVD of the pics before we leave the office tonight.

After our appointment (should take about an hour), we're heading downtown to have dinner at The Melting Pot. This is one of our favorite restaurants. I purchased a deal on Living Social last month for $47. We Chris gets 2 glasses of wine and we'll share cheese fondue, salads and the main course fondue. If you've ever eaten at The Melting Pot, you know that's a steal! I may get dessert...depending on how much I've already indulged!

I told Chris that I think I want to pick out my birthday gift. We went to Stillwater on Sunday for me to try and find something for my present, but I didn't see anything I just had to have. Bummer! We did, however, manage to find a place to get some yummy nachos. Chris is still deciding if this has moved up to his #1 nacho. I thought they were amazing. I like more veggies on mine though.



Nachos from Nacho Mamas...this is the large and she warned us that they were huge!

I also made it pretty clear that I wanted to get some ice cream. I've been craving ice cream so much lately!



Ice cream cone from Izzy's - it was very yummy. I got salted carmel, mint chocolate chip (which wasn't mint colored - weird!) and an Izzy scoop of bubble gum on top. I was in heaven!

Now I just need to figure out what I want for my birthday gift....Here's to my last year in my 20's!



Things gettin me all excited!

I mentioned in my last post that there are a few things that I'm pretty excited about. Here's what been goin' on around here lately (and part of my excuse the reason for lack of posting)

2 Tuesdays ago (the 24th of July), I met up with some pretty awesome ladies for the first MN Blogger get together. It was so much fun to meet up with ladies in the Twin Cities and chat with them about careers, babies, upcoming weddings and all sorts of other fun stuff! I was a huge slacker and didn't take any pictures that night. I was exhausted from being at a work conference all day and then meeting up for hh and then sitting in dreadfully hot Psycho Suzi's. I wouldn't change it (except maybe some a/c?). I can't wait for our next get together! If you want to see everyone's fun recaps and pictures of the night, check out the MN Blogger page!

Last Saturday I went with my parents to purchase our crib/changing table and mattress. Chris and I had already picked it out (for the most part) and my parents so generously offered to pay for the crib for us. I can't begin to express how thankful I am for that. Um, cribs are freakin expensive (and everything baby related!). It should be here in about a week or so, can't wait!

Sunday morning, Chris and I headed up to St Louis Park to pick up a bassinet that I found on craigslist. Call me the worst mom ever if I don't find it necessary to have everything we buy for our baby be brand new. I love the bassinet we found and it was $20 in really great condition!

Oscar is very curious about all of this baby stuff going on and I'm on a quest to find another grey box to put underneath. Target only had 1, I'm hoping to score another at a different location.

Tuesday night we met up with the lady I found on craigslist to sew our crib bedding. It was kind of overwhelming, but I think we're both happy with what we've picked out (and purchased!). Once I get her all of the supplies, it should take about 3 weeks for her to finish.



My pinspiration


The fabric we picked out. We will be following the pinspiration pretty accurately for where the colors will be going. We're doing a valance instead of full length curtains. I might get full length curtains to coordinate, we'll see how it turns out first! I'm also going to add some pink elements into the room to make it more girly, but wanted to keep some of it neutral.

Wednesday night, I drug Chris and I attended a class to get us all informed on cloth diapering (the class we went to is at Amma Parenting Center in Edina and it was FREE!). I'm really set on cloth diapering our child(ren). I've read a ton of benefits to it - other than not filling up the landfills with disposables. Obviously, it takes more work and can be more of an upfront cost but I really hope that we can make it work for our family! The class was full of useful information and is taught by local gals that own a cloth diaper store and are currently cloth diapering their kiddos. They showed the different types and listed pros and cons of each type. We haven't fully decided on what we want to use, but we've weeded out ones we don't want to use.

Thursday night, I began painting the nursery. Just getting started on some of the trim. We're painting it grey and re-using some of the paint we had leftover from the bathroom makeover. I'm excited to finally have a vision for the nursery. I've got so many pinterest ideas for in there. Lets hope I have enough time to complete them :)

Tonight, I'm meeting up with some friends and heading out to Canterbury for the races! I've only been once about 10 years ago so it should be exciting to get out there again and see my friends!

Tomorrow, we were hoping to take a trip up to Stillwater for some lunch and shopping. I've only been to Stillwater for a wedding about a month ago and really wanted to check out the shops then, but didn't end up having time. I'm hoping to find something that Chris can buy me for my birthday next Tuesday! It's supposed to rain tomorrow, so I guess we'll see what we get up to!

Next Tuesday is my birthday, big 29 here I come! That evening we're going to have a 3d/4d ultrasound done (super excited!!) and depending on when we get done we are planning to head to The Melting Pot (our favorite "occasions" restaurant). Yummy! I got a certificate last month to get cheese fondue, salad and main course for $47/couple...score! I'm sure we'll sneak in some dessert too!

So, that's what I've been up to! I hope you have a great weekend!

Week 25

Week 25

Face Shot from this morning - sorry for the craptastic photography, I promise I look way cuter in person :)

Belly shot - let me just say that this makes my tummy look HUGE. I know it's big and all, but maternity clothes have a way of making you look more pregnant than you really do look - just my opinion!

How far along? 24 W 6 D

Size of Baby? Corn (12.5 in 1.25lbs)

Maternity clothes? Yep, mostly hanging out in the maternity clothing now. I try to sneak a few non-maternity items in too

Weight Gain? 9 pounds!

 Sleep: Pretty good. I've started sleeping with a blanket behind my back to support it. I'm trying to forego the body pillow since that would involve me purchasing one. Trying to save my moola!

Best moment this week:  I will be doing another post on this. We've made a lot of headway on stuff lately and I'm pretty excited about a few things!

Miss Anything? Not gonna lie, I've looked at Chris drinking his beer lately and thought that it looked pretty refreshing. It hasn't bothered me at all up until now.

Movement: Oh yes, lots and lots of stuff moving and grooving in there!

Food cravings: Cereal with milk, Cheese and Crackers, Mexican Food, Ice Cream...pretty much anything I shouldn't be eating!

Anything making you queasy or sick: Nothing that I know of, having no issues in the eating department!

Gender: BABY GIRL

Labor Signs: None yet

Symptoms: Nothing really, just normal pregnancy stuff as far as I'm concerned

Belly Button in or out? Still in

Mood: Excited!!

A Pinterest Filled Weekend

This past weekend, I decided to tackle some of the projects that I had pinned and have been wanting to get done. Some stuff I already had, some stuff I had the ideas in my head of what I wanted to do - just no time!

Here's what I got up to:

Homemade Laundry Detergent - recipe found here I was way more excited than one should be to make laundry detergent. I spent about $30 to get all of the supplies - including a cute glass jar to put the detergent in (that was $10). The jar pictured is not mine, I don't have my lettering on mine yet! It was pretty easy to do and should last us about 9 months or so!

Christmas Card Books - Instructions found here So apparently, I we have a problem called hoarding. I We do not like to throw away cards/announcements/thank yous...it's kind of ridiculous. If you have given or sent either of us a card in the last 6 years we seriously probably still have it - I'm not joking.

My completed Christmas 2011 book

While doing this project, I discovered how obsessed in love I was with Chris when we first met. I would write cute little notes and cards to him. Gave him cards every monthly anniversary and such. That slowly drifted into just the essential dates...annual anniversary, birthday, fur baby Father's Day, Valentine's Day, Christmas. It's fun to look back at the stuff I would say. I'm pretty shocked that he actually asked me to marry him after all of that :)

Pile of cards that I gave Chris over the years

Some of the other books I did. I decided that Chris's cards I gave him are better off in a box since there are soooo many!

Chalkboard Paint Wine Glasses - instructions found here The chalkboard paint part was done in April for my m-i-l's  birthday gift. I needed to decorate the upper glass part. I haven't technically given these to her yet - her birthday was in May, but I did tell her that she's getting another grandchild on her birthday so I thought the wait could be worth it :) I also told Chris that a steady stream of birthday gifts may not be such a bad thing either. It's a surprise that you don't know you're getting until it's here!

Finished glasses

With the erasable chalk writing

The glass says "It's my birthday and I'll wine if I want to"

Photo to Canvas - Instructions found here This project was super easy and low cost. I made 5 canvas prints for our bathroom for $30 and I still have 4 large canvases left over for future projects. I got the canvases at Michaels which happened to be on sale and I had a 25% off everything coupon. I printed my pics at Costco for an incredibly cheap price. I already had modge podge and paint for the edges. I love this project and will be doing some more for the baby's room!

Some of the pics and canvases (2 8x10 prints)

2 5x7 prints

Apply modge podge on top of pics

Finally a use for my old accounting books that I've been hoarding holding on to for future use

 pic from our last trip to Captiva

 pic from our honeymoon, lovely sunset on the beach

 Costco had pics that you can print from their website. This is in Death Valley - this pics may get changed in the future. The great thing about this project is that you can update photos by just applying new pics over old ones!

 Fish in the aquarium in Chicago from last summer. How hilarious looking are these guys?! They have a huge bump on their forehead and their profile is so human like

My favorite and biggest print - sunset from our honeymoon. The pic is beautiful and serene. Will be very relaxing while I'm laying in the tub dreaming of Captiva!

One piece of advice I can give from doing this project is to see what size canvases you can purchase before ordering your prints. I had a little issue with finding the correct size canvas after I ordered the prints and had to re-order the large print. It was only a $6 mistake but could've been avoided.

We also tended to our much over-grown garden and put up a fence to keep woodchucks out! One got in a couple weeks ago and ate up all my lettuce and half of my broccoli plants. Oscar didn't like the woodchuck either!

I'm excited to meet up with some of the MN Blogger girls tomorrow night! I hope to see you there!

Makeover Monday - Master Bathroom

So, this post was all written and ready to go a month ago...I went in to post it one morning at work and somehow it got deleted and disappeared. I was NOT happy since I had spent quite a bit of time uploading pics and commenting. Anyways, here is our almost finished master bath. Enjoy!

The inspiration that I found on Pinterest

Before Pictures

Huge double sink vanity with a ton of crap essentials in the middle

Big ugly mirror

Outdated light fixtures and a lovely floral wall paper border at the ceiling. Also note the white vinyl flooring

Picture of the vanity cabinets once I removed all of the doors/hardware and had stripped the finish off

My wood staining party

More staining

We opted to lay down a heating pad under our tile so our feet can be toasty in the winter

Tile down and ready to be grouted

Almost finished product:

View from the entrance

Bathtub area (pics to hang on the wall got completed this past weekend - post to come)

Window looking into the backyard

The door is currently off, it needs to be stained. This why the project is not complete yet. Hopefully get that tackled soon!

Shower

I spray painted all of the towel racks/bars/rings and toilet paper holder a matte black color. I like the way they look and   it saved quite a bit of money! 

View of the vanity - new lights and mirrors. The original plan to construct a frame to go around the existing mirror proved to be a little expensive and very time consuming. My husband is very busy in the spring/summer. We bought the mirrors at Home Depot for about $50 each and sold the old mirror on Craigslist for like $25. Not too bad of a trade-off. My husband and I built the center shelving unit. I really like the way it turned out and that our clutter is more contained in the cute baskets I got at Target. We also swapped out the cabinet hardware with a chrome handle instead of the bronze. Love the look!

Front view of the vanity

 Overall, I'm so happy with the way everything turned out. We totally revamped our bathroom on a pretty reasonable budget. The most expensive thing was the decision to get the heated flooring. I think we'll be happy when December/January rolls around! The most time consuming thing was staining all of the cabinets. I LOVE the way they turned out, but it was quite a bit of work. The product I used has been used in our house before and I hate working with it, but the end result is always worth it!

Baby Girl Got Moves

Yesterday was a pretty exciting day in the life of a pregnant lady!

Last night while eating dinner I told Chris that I was pretty sure that on Sunday night when I was reading in bed the baby kicked. The baby {supposedly} kicked so hard that the iPad resting on my tummy lifted up on one side. I was shocked and thought I must be going crazy(er). I put the iPad down and rested my hand on my tummy to feel another kick, but didn't feel anything and figured I was either imagining things or extremely tired and should sleep. So off to sleep I went.

Well, my craziness was put at ease last night. Chris and I were watching America's Got Talent and I started feeling some movement again. I put my hand on my tummy and I could feel the baby kicking me. I immediately told Chris and made him put his hand there. She must've gotten shy and wouldn't kick for him so he took his hand away. I put my hand back and shortly after she was kicking away again. I put Chris's hand back and we had so much fun feeling her kicking and dancing away in there.

Chris was supposed to work last night and ended up finding someone to work for him since he worked during the day and has plenty of work lined up the rest of this week. I am so happy and thankful that he was home.

Yesterday was also exciting because I scheduled two 3d/4d ultrasound appointments. In June, I asked Chris if we could look into getting one done and just check out the cost. I was extremely excited to find an office in Bloomington, MN that does great work and at reasonable prices (in my opinion). Here is the website if you live in the Twin Cities and are interested in checking them out. I called and spoke to one of the owners who is also the guy that will be performing the ultrasounds. He was extremely nice and answered all of my questions and concerns. The business is family-owned and seems to be a great place to go with state of the art equipment. Our first appointment is on my birthday, August 7. I can't imagine a better way to spend my birthday :) The second appointment is on Sept 7. We'll get lots of pictures and a DVD of each appointment. I'm so excited to see our little baby soon! I'll do a post after our first appointment to let you know how our experience was in case you are considering going there.

On Thursday we're leaving to go to Minot, ND (my hometown) for the weekend. I'm really not looking forward to the 8+ hour car ride (hey Kelly, can we borrow Greg to fly us over there, haha) but I am looking forward to seeing my family and spending some time with my niece and nephews!

If I don't post before then, I hope you have a great weekend!