I have quickly learned that a pregnant woman cries. A LOT. A few weeks ago, I was watching that lame show "Live to Dance" with my husband, and I started BAWLING. For really no reason. I just was so emotional that these people loved to dance so much! haha I was laughing at the same time I was crying because I realized how ridiculous I was being. My husband thought it was hysterical as well. And I've learned to not watch Oprah unless I'm by myself because AGAIN, crying session is pretty much guaranteed.
But when I stumbled across THIS BLOG and the beautiful story that is featured of baby Nella, I think I cried more than I have in this entire pregnancy combined.
Please read. You will be moved, inspired, and a better person because of it. I really believe that.
26 January 2011
Little Baby is already famous!
I got to make the big baby announcement on the Canadian radio station 92.3 Fred FM on Monday! How cool is that? You can hear it at the radio station's blog by clicking HERE
25 January 2011
Waistlines are SO 2010...
Goodbye waistline, hello motherhood! Thank heavens that leggings are in!
Literally, I felt like I woke up one morning and pow! There it was!
Here's a picture taken at 12 weeks:
And just a week later at 13 weeks, the bump was even bigger!
We had our NT ultrasound (that's the genetic screening for Down's syndrome and other chromosomal defects) at 13 weeks and Bean was moving around SO MUCH! We saw the fingers, toes, and even ears- it was so clear! The baby is healthy and growing big and strong!
The pictures that they printed out were pretty crappy, but maybe some of you can see the profile in this picture. The spine is visible too and those LONG legs! I love the Little potbelly!
What do you think, does this blurry baby picture look like a little girl or a little boy?!
The little one had it's hands behind it's head and was relaxing at first, but after the technician started pressing and moving my belly around, Bean started showing us karate chops and tumbling moves! This little one is active- I have a feeling I won't get much sleep after I start feeling those kicks!
My husband was staring very intently at the screen, hoping to get a clue whether we would be buying pink or blue but I told the technician we are NOT finding out, and to not accept any secret bribes from him!
I cannot wait to meet this little person!
Literally, I felt like I woke up one morning and pow! There it was!
Here's a picture taken at 12 weeks:
And just a week later at 13 weeks, the bump was even bigger!
We had our NT ultrasound (that's the genetic screening for Down's syndrome and other chromosomal defects) at 13 weeks and Bean was moving around SO MUCH! We saw the fingers, toes, and even ears- it was so clear! The baby is healthy and growing big and strong!
The pictures that they printed out were pretty crappy, but maybe some of you can see the profile in this picture. The spine is visible too and those LONG legs! I love the Little potbelly!
What do you think, does this blurry baby picture look like a little girl or a little boy?!
The little one had it's hands behind it's head and was relaxing at first, but after the technician started pressing and moving my belly around, Bean started showing us karate chops and tumbling moves! This little one is active- I have a feeling I won't get much sleep after I start feeling those kicks!
My husband was staring very intently at the screen, hoping to get a clue whether we would be buying pink or blue but I told the technician we are NOT finding out, and to not accept any secret bribes from him!
I cannot wait to meet this little person!
24 January 2011
No baby pastels here!
Little baby bean will have to learn to love modern style like mama and papa do- that means no Disney, Winnie the Pooh, or pastel baby stuff in the nursery! Our apartment is in a high-rise building in manhattan so space is at a premium and we want to keep all our furniture and decor the same mid-century modern style.
We searched hundreds of cribs until we found the one we wanted: it's by a company called DucDuc, and it's the Austin design. The crib is made in the U.S. with sustainable wood, low-emission stain/paint, and we bought an all organic mattress. Of course, I can see all of you parents chuckling at us- yes, we understand the amount of poop and pee that this crib is going to see in it's lifetime :)
The bedding is by Argington- we liked the pebble and goldfish motif, and I think it's a great neutral print or girl or boy. The set included a dust ruffle (gag!) and a reversible bumper with goldfish on one side and pebbles on the other. Crib bumpers are actually quite controversial and even illegal in many countries, since there is a risk of suffocation until the child is older. We might use it when the kid is bigger, but definitely not as an infant. The material from the dust ruffle we will use to make a cover for the changing pad. So resourceful! :)
This little item is the baby swing- how cool looking is that?! It has a dozen different settings including kangaroo, ocean wave, and car ride which rumbles and bounces like you're driving in a car! The base has built in speakers and an iPod dock so baby can listen to mama singing sweet music even when I'm away! Lol
And, of course, no nursery is complete without a rocking chair for those late late nights!
Hopefully, the view of the Hudson and the twinkle of the New York City skyline at night will be just the thing to send this kid into dreamland!
This rocking chair is from a design company called Blu Dot, based right here in the good 'ol USA. This was another item that took a LONG time to decide on. Do you realize how hard it is to find a modern rocking chair? Everything out there seems to have pouffy material and country asthetic. We needed it to be comfortable and sit really well with a tall back. Because of the way the wood is moulded, it is EXTREMELY comfortable and rocks like a dream!
Well, there you have it- a tour of the modern baby pad of little Baby Bean!
We searched hundreds of cribs until we found the one we wanted: it's by a company called DucDuc, and it's the Austin design. The crib is made in the U.S. with sustainable wood, low-emission stain/paint, and we bought an all organic mattress. Of course, I can see all of you parents chuckling at us- yes, we understand the amount of poop and pee that this crib is going to see in it's lifetime :)
The bedding is by Argington- we liked the pebble and goldfish motif, and I think it's a great neutral print or girl or boy. The set included a dust ruffle (gag!) and a reversible bumper with goldfish on one side and pebbles on the other. Crib bumpers are actually quite controversial and even illegal in many countries, since there is a risk of suffocation until the child is older. We might use it when the kid is bigger, but definitely not as an infant. The material from the dust ruffle we will use to make a cover for the changing pad. So resourceful! :)
This little item is the baby swing- how cool looking is that?! It has a dozen different settings including kangaroo, ocean wave, and car ride which rumbles and bounces like you're driving in a car! The base has built in speakers and an iPod dock so baby can listen to mama singing sweet music even when I'm away! Lol
And, of course, no nursery is complete without a rocking chair for those late late nights!
Hopefully, the view of the Hudson and the twinkle of the New York City skyline at night will be just the thing to send this kid into dreamland!
This rocking chair is from a design company called Blu Dot, based right here in the good 'ol USA. This was another item that took a LONG time to decide on. Do you realize how hard it is to find a modern rocking chair? Everything out there seems to have pouffy material and country asthetic. We needed it to be comfortable and sit really well with a tall back. Because of the way the wood is moulded, it is EXTREMELY comfortable and rocks like a dream!
Well, there you have it- a tour of the modern baby pad of little Baby Bean!
Let the shopping begin!
Our parents have been so thrilled for every day that they are closer to meeting this little baby! My mum confessed that she had already crocheted a baby blanket for us over a year ago, and just had a feeling that it would be needed soon! Of course, the blanket is in BLUE, and in her words, "I thought I may as well make it in the colour I'm hoping for!"
Dan's mom had also been crocheting a baby blanket, before she even knew that little bean was on the way. She picked a gender neutral white, though. This will be grandchild number 14 for her! Plus, she has 7 great grandchildren!
Here's a picture of my mum with the baby onesie from the video. If you're wondering why she has a paper crown on her head, it's not a fashion statement: it's because we had popped open our christmas crackers and it's a tradition that we all wear the paper crowns during dinner.
My husband surprised me with a very special gift just after we found out we were expecting: a baby cup charm from Tiffany for my Tiffany charm bracelet! I can't wait until I have the "Mum" charm on this too!
And, of course, we started shopping at diesel already for some gender neutral baby stuff. We arent finding out the sex of the baby ( we love a surprise, and we really don't care either way if it's a boy or girl!)
Here's some red corduroy kicks:
These little baby diesel shoes are so tiny!
More pictures to come so check back often!!
Dan's mom had also been crocheting a baby blanket, before she even knew that little bean was on the way. She picked a gender neutral white, though. This will be grandchild number 14 for her! Plus, she has 7 great grandchildren!
Here's a picture of my mum with the baby onesie from the video. If you're wondering why she has a paper crown on her head, it's not a fashion statement: it's because we had popped open our christmas crackers and it's a tradition that we all wear the paper crowns during dinner.
My husband surprised me with a very special gift just after we found out we were expecting: a baby cup charm from Tiffany for my Tiffany charm bracelet! I can't wait until I have the "Mum" charm on this too!
And, of course, we started shopping at diesel already for some gender neutral baby stuff. We arent finding out the sex of the baby ( we love a surprise, and we really don't care either way if it's a boy or girl!)
Here's some red corduroy kicks:
These little baby diesel shoes are so tiny!
More pictures to come so check back often!!
20 January 2011
Little Bean and the Christmas Surprise!
We had our first ultrasound at Park Ave Radiologists, when the baby was just a tiny 7 weeks! The little heart was beating strong and fast- what an amazing experience! It finally made it REAL to me!
Dan decided that the baby's nickname would be "Bean" because that's what he said that the baby looked like! The baby wasn't moving or anything at this point, and the yolk sac was still nourishing the baby, since the placenta hadn't yet been formed.
During the next few weeks, I had a lot of nausea, but only threw up a handful of times. Mostly, because I LOATHE throwing up. I hate it! I will do anything possible to NOT throw up! And morning sickness isn't like regular sickness, where after you throw up, you feel better. No. You still feel nauseous. And the fatigue is just like being on cold medicine...for 12 weeks! It's just an "I need to sleep, I wish I could nap" type of feeling, that never goes away. I was going to bed at 7pm every night, because I realized that this is the ONLY time I will ever have the luxury of resting and napping during a pregnancy. If I have another child, I will be running around after the first one, and won't be able to have this luxury of alone time!
Work was rough- I started coming in to the office an hour early just so I could throw up and get all that sickness feeling over with. Riding public transportation proved to be a huge test to my ability to not VOM, so I started walking to and from work, and gave up the bus and the subway. Not that this did anything to help my TIREDNESS, but I would rather be tired than throwing up!
I lost about 6 lbs in the first trimester, as a result of just not having and appetite, and wanting to spend all my time sleeping rather than eating. I ate anything that was bland: white rice, plain toast, popsicles, and mashed potatoes. The less flavor, the better! The lemonade thing still stayed with me- I read that lemon helps with morning sickness, so maybe that's why my body wanted it.
The hardest part of these few weeks was keeping this a secret from my parents and family! We told Dan's parents and family when we were at his home over Thanksgiving, but I told Dan I would NOT tell my parents over the phone- I wanted to tell them in person, so I would have to wait until Christmas when we were in Montreal.
My mom is a baby fanatic, and her youngest grandchild is now going to be 14 so I knew it was going to be earth-shaking news for her! We told both Dan's parents and my parents the same way: with special gifts to open together. For the Dads, we got a book that is called "The Grandparents' Handbook." For Moms, we got baby onesies with a rocking chair on them that say "My Grandma Rocks!"
Here's a video of how it went down with my mom at Christmastime. We gave them the presents as we sat down to Christmas Dinner on Christmas Eve. Keep in mind, NO ONE in my family knew that we were even trying, so it was a big shock to everyone! Basically, she didn't get what we were saying until my sister spelled it out for her. Hilarious!!
Dan decided that the baby's nickname would be "Bean" because that's what he said that the baby looked like! The baby wasn't moving or anything at this point, and the yolk sac was still nourishing the baby, since the placenta hadn't yet been formed.
During the next few weeks, I had a lot of nausea, but only threw up a handful of times. Mostly, because I LOATHE throwing up. I hate it! I will do anything possible to NOT throw up! And morning sickness isn't like regular sickness, where after you throw up, you feel better. No. You still feel nauseous. And the fatigue is just like being on cold medicine...for 12 weeks! It's just an "I need to sleep, I wish I could nap" type of feeling, that never goes away. I was going to bed at 7pm every night, because I realized that this is the ONLY time I will ever have the luxury of resting and napping during a pregnancy. If I have another child, I will be running around after the first one, and won't be able to have this luxury of alone time!
Work was rough- I started coming in to the office an hour early just so I could throw up and get all that sickness feeling over with. Riding public transportation proved to be a huge test to my ability to not VOM, so I started walking to and from work, and gave up the bus and the subway. Not that this did anything to help my TIREDNESS, but I would rather be tired than throwing up!
I lost about 6 lbs in the first trimester, as a result of just not having and appetite, and wanting to spend all my time sleeping rather than eating. I ate anything that was bland: white rice, plain toast, popsicles, and mashed potatoes. The less flavor, the better! The lemonade thing still stayed with me- I read that lemon helps with morning sickness, so maybe that's why my body wanted it.
The hardest part of these few weeks was keeping this a secret from my parents and family! We told Dan's parents and family when we were at his home over Thanksgiving, but I told Dan I would NOT tell my parents over the phone- I wanted to tell them in person, so I would have to wait until Christmas when we were in Montreal.
My mom is a baby fanatic, and her youngest grandchild is now going to be 14 so I knew it was going to be earth-shaking news for her! We told both Dan's parents and my parents the same way: with special gifts to open together. For the Dads, we got a book that is called "The Grandparents' Handbook." For Moms, we got baby onesies with a rocking chair on them that say "My Grandma Rocks!"
Here's a video of how it went down with my mom at Christmastime. We gave them the presents as we sat down to Christmas Dinner on Christmas Eve. Keep in mind, NO ONE in my family knew that we were even trying, so it was a big shock to everyone! Basically, she didn't get what we were saying until my sister spelled it out for her. Hilarious!!
19 January 2011
Little Lady Big Apple...LITTLE BABY!!
Big announcement, blog readers: that little faint pink line on the right means that life is about to completely change! It's official- I'm having a baby! The little Bean, as my husband fondly has nicknamed it- is due at the end of July. It was so much fun to tell my husband, Dan the news! Although we had been hoping to see that little pink line for a few months, it was still a shock to actually see it for REAL!
I wrapped up a special package with a fancy bow, and surprised him in SoHo as I met him after work. When he first opened it, he had an irritated look on his face, as if to say, "Are you seriously buying BABY stuff already?" But then, I told him to READ what it said!
But, let's back up the story a little bit and I'll take you back to the beginning. A few weeks earlier, I went to Chinatown to my fave hair stylist, Pat, to get my usual highlights. Remember? I've blogged about this little hidden (cheap!) gem before.
I wanted to try something a bit different, since we were coming into fall, so I picked out a highlight color and two low-lights. Here's what the colors were SUPPOSED to look like....
...But for some strange reason, my hair turned out BRIGHT PINK!!
I didn't mind it, but it wasn't very professional for my work, so the stylist said to come back in a few weeks and she would re-do it for free. I couldn't understand why the colors I picked looked NOTHING like what my hair turned out to be! This had never happened before!
When I went back to the stylist, they told me that they had to do an all over lowlight to take out the pink color. Then, they would add the highlights back in. The color for the lowlight was a caramel-blonde color. Still in the blonde family, but dark enough to cover the pink. Again, it went COMPLETELY awry, and HERE'S what I ended up with:
LOOK AT MY EXPRESSION! Not very happy at this moment! I ended up staying at the salon until 9:30pm while they worked and worked to fix it. When I left the salon, it looked MUCH better, like this:
STILL didn't cover up all the pink, though! I now have a hunch as to why my hair disaster might have happened: I was PREGNANT! Apparently, hormones affect how your hair reacts to the chemicals in hair dye, so they always advise a very thorough strand test. Now you know!
After the pink hair incident, I took a pregnancy test, because Dan was counting down the days every month before I could take a test. I didn't want to test, because I was afraid of being disappointed, but I did anyway. It was NEGATIVE. I showed him, and hoped he would just relax for another month, when we would try again. Of course, he DIDN'T! He still insisted I was pregnant! I told him I didn't have any symptoms, no sickness, nothing. He said, "Oh really? You've eaten cheeseburgers at every meal for the last 3 days! You NEVER eat cheeseburgers!" It was true.
A few days later, I stopped at Tim Hortons on the way to work. Tim Hortons is a Canadian institute: a coffee and donut shop that opened in the 60's in Canada, and JUST started coming to the states recently. We got our first Tim's in NYC just last summer! Anyway, I ordered up a large iced coffee, with cream and sweetener. I took a sip as I was paying and it was HORRIBLE! I asked them if they could make me a fresh one, as this one tasted burnt and very very stale. They apologized, and gave me a fresh new coffee, just brewed, for free. I thanked them, and took my new coffee outside. I took another drink as I waited at the crosswalk- it was HORRIBLE! Same thing! I tossed the entire coffee in the trash, and was so annoyed. They must have changed their coffee when they came to the U.S.! It's definitely different tasting in Canada!
That day, for lunch, I got a carnitas Chipotle salad, with a side of guacamole. I barely touched the salad, but I ate the WHOLE CONTAINER of guacamole, straight with a SPOON! I couldn't get enough avocados- and bought some more on the way home! The other intense craving I had was for fresh squeezed lemonade. I drank 3 bottles of lemonade that day at work. Insane!
When I got home at the end of the day, I was alone and I figured, "Why not take another test. I know it's going to be negative, but at least Dan will BELIEVE me now!" I took the test...the one that you saw in the picture above. I WAS PREGNANT!
We celebrated Thanksgiving a few days later, and we took these pictures as our first "family" photos. Yup, family of three!
As we waited for the restaurant to open for Thanksgiving dinner, we sat in a little cafe across the street. I had a yogurt ;)
Looking back, it all makes sense: the hair disaster, the coffee aversion, the cravings for avocados and lemonade...it was all signs that I was PREGNANT! Crazy how you can miss things that are RIGHT THERE! I was so wrapped up with trying to diagnose the "usual" pregnancy symptoms, that I completely missed all these!
17 January 2011
12 January 2011
Website 'O the day
My recommended website today is CUT OUT AND KEEP. This website has some GREAT and easy projects that you can do at home. One of my fave's so far is this scarf, made from an old t-shirt. Simple, easy, and no sewing involved!
There's great ideas for furniture re-fabs too- all cheap, easy and simple to understand. Check it out, crafters!
There's great ideas for furniture re-fabs too- all cheap, easy and simple to understand. Check it out, crafters!
01 January 2011
Happy new year!
Here is the last sunset of the decade, from our apartment in Manhattan. Here's to 2011!!!
-- Post From My iPhone
-- Post From My iPhone
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