That time I Caught the Flu, then Lost My (Snooki Style) Pregnant Mind

Wow. Last week was a whopper. The husband was away on a business trip in Virginia, and it was the busiest work week of the year (my family is in the Irish Pub/Restaurant business). On Thursday night I started feeling a little sick and very achy. At first I thought I must have accidentally eaten something I was allergic to, as these are the same exact symptoms I have when I make an food allergy mistake. If only I had been so lucky. By Friday morning I had the full blown stomach flu (not the respiratory influenza you can be vaccinated for). Having the stomach flu sucks, but having it while pregnant is adds an element of fear to all the other awful feelings. Luckily my aunt is a midwife at the birth center I go to, so she made sure to cheek on me throughout the whole ordeal (I also was staying at my parent's house which was nice...nothing makes going through the flu better than having your mom around to take care of you). The main goal was to make sure that I was getting enough fluids, and I don't think there was a second I was awake when I didn't have a straw of water or gatorade connected to me. I really, really, really didn't want to go to the hospital if at all possible. The thought of waiting in triage while constantly throwing up + the whole fact that I was infectious was enough to make me the most determined person ever to stay hydrated. The worst part lasted about 50 hours, and even after that it probably took another 3 days to start feeling like I could function like a normal human being. Phew, I really hope it stays far, far away from you all because it was no fun!

Later in the week my mom decided that I would heal better at the shore (really, she needed to get away after 14 straight days of insane work), so off to the shore house we went. I must say, that if you have to recover from the remnants of the stomach flu, the shore is a pretty good place to do it. But after a few days of laying around, I started to get stir crazy. So we went to my mom's other favorite place...Marshalls (the one in Cape May if you are wondering). I was hoping to find some loose tops and dresses since summer seems to have come a bit early this year. My mom piled a bunch of stuff into the dressing room that she either thought I would like, or would fit over the bump. That's how I stumbled upon this gem. At first I thought it was just a teal dress, but oh no, in true Jersey Shore style, it has a huge leopard belt. (1) I can't believe I even tried this on and took a picture of it and (2) I can't believe I'm actually going to post this. You can thank my pregnant flu-recovering brain.

 Now I just have to work on teaching the baby to fist pump. 

I hope that picture made your Friday afternoon. Here are some other pictures in some of my more regular clothes: 

 25 Weeks

Almost 28 weeks 

I'm officially a few days away from the last and final trimester. Whoohooo! I figured I would share a few of the things I am loving lately: 

- Spanx Power Mama  

I'm on my feet all day at work, and these help so much. Just having that little bit of support when you are constantly bending over or going up and down stairs a thousand times is a blessing. Plus, I like that they make me feel less lumpy and bumpy when I wear a nice outfit.

- Burt's Bees Replenishing Cocoa & Cupuacu Butters Lotion

My skin gets pretty itchy, and I love this lotion. It seriously lasts all day and doesn't feel greasy or oily. Plus the smell makes me think of the beach. 

-These Tank Tops

I've tried tank tops from Old Navy, Gap and Target, but these are by far my favorites. The material is nicer than the other options, and not see through (like some of the lighter colored Old Navy options). I got them on sale for $12.00 when you buy two (I believe they are probably on sale often). I plan on living in these most of the summer.  

Hope you all have a great weekend! 

100 days

I remember hitting the 100 day countdown mark when planning our wedding. The last 100 days were a blur of activity...bridal showers, bachelorette party, rsvps, seating charts, favors, timelines, etc. It feels fairly similar this time around, minus the whole timeline part. Because you know, this whole thing is going to happen on baby's schedule, and not on mine.

So I do what any obsessive compulsive person does when they have no control. I write lists, and then lists for my lists, and then I revise and update my lists. I'm not sure how much Ryan is ok with this trend, but he's been with me long enough now to know how to deal with it :).

Anyway, the next 100 days are going to be busy. Which I think is a good thing, because it will definitely make time go by a bit faster. We have lots of baby classes coming up at the birth center we are going to, a baby shower, a nursery to put together, and various other housing and other projects to finish up. My goal is to get everything we can get done, done by mid-May. I doubt that there is much that I am going to want to do when it is super hot outside and I am 9 month pregnant, so this is my goal right now. I know I'll also feel better about having things done by this point, just in case this baby decides to pull a "me" and come almost 5 weeks early. I'm sure it is more likely that this little one will be late, but better safe than sorry.

So here's to the next 100 days! We can't wait to meet the little mcnugget and find out if we have a son or a daughter!

Friday Night Bullet Points

This has been a heck of a week...hence the lack of posts. So, here's a quick bullet point update:

- My sleep has diminished even more due to the hip issues I've been experiencing. Before, while sleeping in the recliner, I could get a good 4 hours of sleep before I had to move every hour. Somehow, this seemed to be enough to function normally.  Now there's no rest...just pain every hour on the hour (if not sooner), and zero sleep. 5 days straight of this found me a crying, hot mess, with a husband who had no idea what to do. My midwife suggested benadryl. I've been hesitant to take anything, as this has been an issue since week 15, so it obviously isn't going away anytime soon. I finally gave in last night, but no dice. I didn't sleep any better and felt like a zombie all day. Does anyone have any suggestions? Did anyone else take tylenol or something else for an extended period of time during their pregnancy? Ugh I feel so torn up about this. 

- The only way to describe the pain is to say it is like having an abscessed tooth in your hip. Of course, it only happens when lying on my side at night (obviously, because you know that's how you have to sleep during pregnancy). In the midst of my sleep deprivation today, I came up with the wonderful idea of seeing if I could sleep with an inflatable swim ring underneath my hip. Hence the reason my husband is now driving around Delaware looking for a place that actually sells inflatable swim rings... you know, in the middle of winter. I don't believe this trip is going to end successfully, but I'm super thankful to have a husband who is willing to try. 

- This week, our unborn child was referred to as "ornery" by one doctor and "strong-willed" by another. This whole pregnancy, I've said that I don't care if we have a boy or a girl (I truly don't, which is why McNugget is a surprise), as long as I get a nice, calm Ryan-like baby. Yup, doesn't look like that is going to happen. (I still love every ounce of you baby...even your ornery, strong-willed parts). 

- My mom always said that I was going to be paid back with a child just like myself. She loves to tell the story of the time I cried hysterically for 2.5 hours in bumper to bumper traffic on the way to the beach. Why? Because the bottoms of my shoes were scuffed. Yes, you read that right....not because the tops or sides of my shoes were messed up....but because the BOTTOMS were scuffed. Looks like she's about to get her wish. 

- My husband and VA friends laugh when I say hysterically. They also make fun of the way I say cherry, berry, banana, camera, and family. Liz Lemon actually said, "Do I say camera weird?" once on 30 Rock. I got a lot of text messages after that episode. Love that Tina Fey broke out the Philly accent. 

- There is a station in the area that plays really, really random songs all day long. They also love to play Men at Work's, "Land Down Under" at least 3 times a week. And my unborn baby....stinkin' loves that song. It's like dance party USA in my belly every time it comes on. I'm not really sure what this says about this child. Like will I need to buy Vegemite when it comes time for solids? Do they even sell Vegemite in Delaware? This is obviously something a rational person thinks about.

FYI this is one very odd music video. 

- Speaking of the land down under... this baby is positioned really low. As in I rarely, if ever, get kicks near or above the belly button. On one hand, this means no heartburn or kicks to the rib. On the other, I get frequent kicks *ahem* down below. Trust me, nothing will provide you with a look of shock on your face quite like that will. 

- We're headed to D.C. this weekend to catch up with lots o' friends and eat lots of yummy foods. We're going Oyamel for lunch tomorrow, Jaleo for dinner (as I've heard that the Jose Andres restaurants are good with food allergies), and then Busboys & Poets for breakfast on Sunday (I had the Mekhleme "Iraqi corned beef hash" last time I was there and it was delicious). I totally plan on making up for the 18 weeks of nausea and food aversions in one weekend. Challenge accepted. I'm also super duper excited to see so many friends we haven't seen in a while. Yay!

- On that note, I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!