7 Days till D (due) Date

Well... we are getting close!  Today is Monday, my due date is next Monday...  That means only 7 whopping days until my due date!  I am shocked by how quickly time has flown by.  Mr. Whimsy and I are excited and nervous (I am the nervous one) about our sweet Baby Whimsy's upcoming arrival.  Please send your prayers our way that the baby is healthy and our family is prepared for this humongous life change.

I have really wanted to wait until the actual due date (July 30) for the baby to come but we found out last week that my doctor will be out of town next weekend (July 27-29).  I am now really hoping Baby Whimsy comes this week or on or after her due date.  I know the other doctor on call would be fabulous but Mr. Whimsy and I both really like my current doctor and I would be more comfortable with her being there to deliver the baby.  Plus she is an Aggie so that bumps her up a notch.  

Last week after my doctors appoint I woke up about 2:30AM and was up until around 5:30AM with contractions, debating with myself whether or not I was actually in labor and needed to get Mr. Whimsy up to go to the hospital.  Obviously I was not in labor but I did recognize that I would prefer not to go into labor in the middle of the night.  So I'm adding that request to my "this is how I would like my labor to go" list.  We shall see how well Baby Whimsy plays along!

Anyway, I am still at work and am planning to keep busy until the big day.  We only have a handful of non-essential items on our to-do list but they should all be taken care of in relatively quick order.  

I promise to post pictures of the nursery this week.  

Hope you have a happy and blessed week!

3 Weeks and Counting (down)

Due Date: July 30, 2012

Todays Date: July 9, 2012

Days Remaining Until Due Date: 21

Mission: To not give birth early

WOW!  How is it possible that I am 3 weeks, 21 days, from my due date?!?!?! Where has the past 9 months gone?  There is still so much to do!  Between work and my crazy To Do list, I really need Baby Whimsy to come on her due date and not be early (I know, I am virtually the only 9 month pregnant person in the summer that is okay with waiting until their actual due date to go into labor!).

Honestly, my goal is to continue going into work until Friday July 27.  I am over a new department in the community I work and have SEVERAL projects that still need to be wrapped up between now and then... After that our sweet girl can come anytime.  Pretty generous of me huh?

24 Hour Virus + 31 weeks Pregnant = New Low

Sorry in advance if the below is too graphic and/or disgusting for you... but I have been told I should try and chronicle my pregnancy, and unfortunately, this tale is one for the books.

I sank to a new, desperate, low this week.  In a (not so) fun experiment, I combined the loveliness of a nasty 24 hour virus with the mobility of being a 31 week pregnant person.  The results were pretty disastrous and I would not recommend it to anyone.  

Without going into the ugly details (too much), I am pretty sure, had I not lived it myself, I could probably find humor in some of the situations so here goes...

Tuesday (also knows as night of doom for me personally) in Texas were the primary elections.  I have always been interested in things political so all day I was very excited and anxious about the results.  After work and house/animal chores, I decided to meet Mr. Whimsy and one of his colleagues at a local pub to see the early results of voting then we would proceed to an election night party.   As soon as I arrived at the pub, I told Mr. Whimsy that I was so anxious my way over I almost had to pull over to get sick.  We both laughed this off as an extreme pregnancy side effect... if we only knew...  and I ordered a coke and fries to settle my stomach (carbs have been my friend anytime I have felt sick since getting pregnant).

We headed to the election night party and I kept telling Mr. Whimsys that I must have had too many fries because I felt really full.  As soon as we got to the party I got a little "normal" pregnancy sick - no big deal, I have that 3-4 times a week.  I tried to enjoy the party and less then 5 minutes later, I was in the bathroom getting really sick.  Thankfully I was the only person in the restroom at the time so this was not big issue.  I cleaned myself up and tried to rejoin the party because I knew Mr. Whimsy really wanted to be there (and I was his ride).  I'm a pretty sweet wife huh? :)

Another 5 minutes went by of my trying to be friendly, visit with folks and put up a good front of being a happy normal pregnant person.  Then, the gurgling in my stomach began again and I made a mad dash to the restroom... until I was stopped on the way by some more of Mr. Whimsys colleagues.  I put on the most genuine smile I could muster, said hello and exchanged pleasantries as quickly as possible then darted off before I made a huge disgusting spectacle of myself.  

I (barely) made it to a restroom stall in time to get sick in a more appropriate place.  I knew I was in it for the long hall so I had some decisions to make during the few seconds I had between losing the contents of my stomach... do I kneel on the floor or just hover over the toilet and try the best I can to avoid getting my dress dirty?  Is kneeling on the floor even an option (I was in a public - albeit clean - restroom for goodness sake)? If I were to squat would people see me under the door when they walked by, if they saw me (which they of course would), how much of my butt would I be exposing? My vanity was long gone but I decided to go the standing/hovering route (for the sake of others that my come into the restroom) and tried my best to simultaneously not touch anything and not pee my pants.  It was quite the challenge - but it got worse.

As I stood/hovered over the toilet, I heard two ladies come into the restroom, talking about the election results.  Thankfully around this time my stomach decided to call a time out and let me have a few seconds to recover.  I made the split decision to be quiet and let the ladies think they were the only people in the restroom at the time.  Fatal mistake.  The two obviously thought they were in private and proceeded to have a LONG conversation about the election results, their opinions, etc.  Halfway into hearing what they thought about the potential for an election run-off, my stomach called halftime over.  

Now I was challenged with being 1. hovering/standing while getting sick, 2. not touching anything, 3. not peeing my pants, 4. being silent.  Fun huh?  

Thankfully as the second half kicked in, the ladies finished up their business, which in turn, let me finish up my business and get the heck out of town (literally, I told Mr. Whimsy he had to find another ride home and I was outta there).

The next 24 hours were filled with a misery I have only dreamed about in my worst nightmares.  Thankfully, that misery is behind me and today is a new, healthy day.  I had my regularly schedule doctors appointment Thursday and she gave me a clean bill of health - so long as I would get some fluids into me.

My advice to pregnant women everywhere is pretty simple: avoid virus' like the plague.  Trust me.

Gymnast or Karate Kid?

The past couple days, Baby Whimsy has been moving like crazy.  The other night I tried to go to bed early and I was totally astonished at how much she was moving, flipping around, kicking, etc.  As much as I wanted her to calm down a bit so I could get some much needed sleep, it was good to feel her strength and health from within.  

To make the kicks, flips and punches more exciting, lately I can feel specific body parts pushing against me when she is moving and my hand is on my belly... not that I can identify the body parts, I can just feel a defined part pushing against me.   Because I find such enjoyment to feeling her (that sounds so crass but I am not sure of a better way to word it), I inevitably start to poke my belly to feel her more.  Mr. Whimsy discourages this (wouldn't want to poke an eye out or something ). 

So the jury's out - future gymnast or total karate kid?  I did gymnastics all while growing up so I'm a little partial to that option.  BUT, it would not be a bad thing for her to be a tough cookie with the chops (pun intended) to defend herself should the need ever arise (and of course, hopefully it would not!).  Regardless of if she chooses one of these or something completely different to spent her time on its fun to imagine how her personality and interest will turn out.  As long as she is healthy in body and spirit,  (future) Momma and Daddy Whimsy will be overcome with blessings.

29 Weeks :: Comparison

29 weeks and going strong

12ish(?) years ago, my 29-week pregnant cousin-in-law, Sara, gave birth to twins, a girl and a boy.  At 11 weeks early, both were tiny miracles but with God's grace they were able to develop into strong and healthy kids.  Today they are still going strong and are healthy, smart, and overall, remarkable pre-teens.  

It's amazing to me that I am at the same point in my pregnancy that Sara was when she had the twins.  It really puts my own pregnancy into perspective.  I am grateful for each day Baby Whimsy gets to stay inside of me to grow stronger and I pray she gets the full 40 weeks to develop in the womb... that being said I understand God's timing is best so we rely on it.

Hafner girls with Baby Whimsy at 29 weeks

That all beings said, at my most recent Dr.'s appointment, I was told everything looked and sounded great.  The baby (at least my bump) is developing as expected and Baby Whimsy has a good strong heartbeat.  I was told her activity would only increase as she grew bigger... I am not sure that is possible though!  She seems to be a gymnast...or karate kid... in the making.  More on that next post!

Swoon Worthy Bedding

I have been looking for pretty bedding for Baby Girl Whimsy's nursery.  It was a bit of a struggle.... At this point in the story, I must admit that I have done almost absolutely nothing to prepare the nursery.  We are preparing to get to work on it June 1, but I am generally of the stick my head in the sand train of thought... If I don't think about it or do anything about it, then time will stand still and there is no time line to worry about.  Finally a coworker pretty much told me point blank that I am a couple months behind (compared to other moms) and needed to get my rear into gear.  That's about when the search began.

I kind looked at stores and found most things for baby girls are (in my humble opinion) neither babyish or terribly girly.  I gravitate towards sweet lines, soft colors, (i.e. more shabby chic). and instead have seen lots of character type patterns, brights colors, etc.  These are right for some folks but not Baby Girl Whimsy or future Momma Whimsy.

In light of my findings at Target and Babies R' Us, I turned to Etsy, and was... completely overwhelmed.  I do not have a big mental capacity right now and there were a billion decisions to make if I went the Etsy route... so I gave up.  Insert coworker who fed me websites to check out in order to avoid my head being buried deeper in the sand.  She sent me to Restoration Hardware's website.  The swooning soon followed.

I almost immediately fell in love with this set up - 

That's when it hit me - I hadn't been loving searching for bedding because I haven't been loving what I was finding.  Now that I am on the right track with the bedding design, I am happy to look, plan, and play with designing Baby Whimsy's nursery.  

Time to commence the shopping!

Baby (Momma) Update

Well, Little Baby Whimsy is growing and doing great!  I am now more than 27 weeks along, and in the third trimester!  Baby Whimsy is expected be here in just about 3 months - July 30.  My belly is out there and there is no denying that I am pregnant.  Doctors appointments have been moved up to every two weeks instead of monthly.  Its getting serious :)

Over the past week or two, and especially that last several days, Baby Whimsy has been moving around non-stop.  I thought I had read that babies take on normal sleeping patterns while in the womb, that they somewhat stick to once they are born.  If that is the case, this baby will never sleep!  She is moving around all day and night, including when I take my 4-6 middle of the night bathroom breaks.  This is actually pretty nice because it lets me know she is okay.  (When I first started feeling her I would get somewhat nervous when I realized I had not felt her move in a couple hours).  

A huge positive... I have been feeling MUCH better.  I still sometimes get a bit sick in the morning a couple times a week but I will take that any day of the week over the miserableness that took over the first several months of the 9 month adventure! 

One thing that had been worrying me is this past week, after I eat breakfast, I have been feeling dizzy and lightheaded.  I was concerned that this was a sign of gestational diabetes.  Thankfully I had a doctors appointment on Monday and we did a glucose screening then. I found out this morning that I am a negative for gestational diabetes (praise Jesus), but it turns out I am anemic.  This really should not be a huge surprise considering my diet - meat in general is not on the top of my list of yummy things (with exception to ground taco beef... and yes, I am calling what Taco Bell serves as ground taco beef).  I will need to start taking an iron supplement daily and that should get things back in order.

As for the nursery, well, I still have lots of really pretty ideas in my head and pinned on Pintrest.  Mr. Whimsy's job has him completely swamped until the first of June so until then, we are kind of at a standstill.  once June hits, he should (fingers crossed) have some extra time on his hands to get the paint brush and tools out.  

SO, all in all things are good and getting better.  We are blessed.

Life Update :: Busy Busy Busy

Well I am officially 3 days away from the halfway (20 week) point in my pregnancy.  My icky pregnancy symptoms have gotten much better - I still get a bit sick in the morning and when I smell something with strong food odors (I stay away from the fridge if there are leftovers in it) but all in all, I am feeling way better.  Funny side note - I have become a quasi vegetarian during this pregnancy.  Right now most meat products completely gross me out... that is except for ground taco meat.  Mexican food remains a safe bet... which is not a bad thing!

I have not blogged lately because I have been flat out busy.  Rather then me taking life by the horns, I kind of feel like I have been quasi strapped in for a crazy roller coaster and I better hold on otherwise I will be sent flying over the edge (long run on sentence intended... I am lacking control people!).  I am certain that with prayer and determination that soon I will again take back reigns though.

I have been pretty tired and worn out but that is probably just as much due to my starting a new job then this pregnancy.  I had been working for the past 2ish years with Mr. Whimsy's company but was offered a great opportunity in the tourism industry this past month.  The job is a constant (and everyday eye opening in a new way) challenge but I honestly think it has really helped with my feeling better because I am constantly going and my mind is working overtime.  

In addition to the new job and preparing for Baby Whimsy, my renal company, LindseysWhimsys, has taken off.  I never expected it to grow as fast as it has but its very exciting.  I pray that I make wise, strategic business decisions and take full advantage of this ever growing business.  

Despite the out of controlness of it all, I know that Mr. Whimsy, Baby Whimsy and I have been incredibly blessed.  We have prayed for opportunities and they have come at us in abundance and for that I am very very thankful.  We can look at our lives and see very clearly that God answers prayers and constantly provides and that is an incredible thing to have experienced first hand.

Oh - and friends, I can not forget - APRILFEST 2012 is set!  We will be playing at the house the last Saturday in April, the 28.  Mark your calendars now (if I do not have your email, please send it to me if you want the official evite - lindseyswhimsys@gmail.com).  A theme has not been set so if you have suggestions, please let me know!

I promise to do a dedicated Baby Whimsy post soon... I just wanted to give a quick update on our lives.  

Favored One

 First I want to thank you, my sweet friends and family, for your encouraging comments.  They have helped propel me into another week of pregnancy and further into that mythical 2nd trimester.  

Quick update: Over the past week the battle of feeling icky vs. feeling like normal has continued to wage.  Thankfully the good feelings win out 2 out of 3 days.  The 2 good days, 1 bad, routine has pretty much become the norm and I happily accept it.  Again, thank you dear friends.

Now onto about the 4th question* people ask when they find out I'm pregnant (*The top 3 are, in order, when are you due (July 30), how have you been feeling (icky but getting better), and do you know if its a boy or girl yet (nope but should soon!)): How did you tell Mr. Whimsy you were pregnant?

To begin, I must say my pregnancy was a surprise to both of us.  Right before Thanksgiving, I told the Mr. that I kind of thought I may be pregnant.  When I told him I was mostly joking... kind of like a empty threat (except it was not a threat but I can not think of a better word for it).  We both just shrugged it off and decided to play the wait and see game.  

A week later, on a Wednesday, I told him I really thought I may be pregnant.  We agreed to wait until Sunday and I would take a at-home pregnancy test.  I was pretty positive Mr. Whimsy completely forgot about it.  Meanwhile, it was on my mind non stop.  I was incredibly nervous, thinking there was no way possible we were ready to bring a Baby Whimsy into this world. My nerves were going non stop and I kept trying to convince myself that I was not pregnant.  

On the way to church Sunday I asked Mr. Whimsy if he was nervous or excited.  He responded with, "about what, church?"  I reminded him that today was the big day we found out.  He had forgotten...

I sat through church really nervous and distracted through the opening worship.  I distinctly remember biting my bottom lip thinking "God we are not ready for this... right?"  When Pastor Alan started talking I felt like he was talking directly to me.  

The service was on how the angel told Mary that she would bring Jesus into the world.  At first Mary was scared but the Bible verse says The angel went to her and said, "Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you. (Luke 1:28, NIV).  Pastor Alan* went on to talk about how God finds favor in his children and we can find comfort in that.

As soon as I heard this I felt an incredible peace for the first time in over a week and I knew that pregnant or not, Mr. Whimsy and I would be okay and God had a plan for our family.  (I mean really, how could you not feel at peace knowing that God finds favor in you?!?!?!).

After lunch we picked up lunch and went home to take THE TEST.  Except the test (i.e. its results) was not nearly as intimidating as it was a mere 2 hours earlier.  

Around 1pm on Sunday, December 8 we found out together that I was indeed pregnant.  It was a very happy and surreal moment for us.  I kept reminding myself that we were favored and all would be ok.  

We promised each other we would not tell anyone (including our parents) until we had gone to the Dr to get the pregnancy confirmed/get more information and we could tell each sets of parents in person within a short time of telling the other set of parents.  

Now I must give Mr. Whimsy mad props because unbeknownst to me, he had been calling around to hospitals, doctors, (even a birthing center) etc. to gather all the information so that I would not be stressed in finding a good doctor etc.  I think it was Tuesday night when I found out he had done so much legwork.  I was a happy wife to say the least.

Later that week the doctor confirmed I was about 8 weeks pregnant and I had armloads of information to digest in the coming weeks/days.

Needless to say it was a very exciting time for us and it was hard to keep it a secret until we saw both sets of our parents in person (about a week later we told them).  It was really hard keeping it a secret from everyone but it was also really fun knowing we had that between the two of us.

I still get pretty nervous at times but I try and remind myself that this child is a gift from God and His (God's) timing is all that matters.  

I really want to make/ask a real artist to paint something like this for Baby Whimsy's room once I know if its going to be a boy or girl (this is a really rough sketch):

To wrap things up (finally) I am sorry for another long post, I thank you for your support and prayers, and I will be back with an update soon!  


Pastor Alan is the preacher at The Ark Church in Conroe.  As I have blogged about before, Mr. Whimsy and I LOVE this church and invite all of friends in the area to join us on Sunday for a casual, inspiration service (plus they have GREAT kids programs).

Pregnancy Roller Coaster

Wow!  I had no idea pre-pregnancy what a roller coaster the first 14 weeks of "being with child" could be!  I have ranged from emotional highs to complete breakdowns, eating nothing but goldfish crackers and nilla wafers to quasi full fledged meals.  The spectrum of feelings (physical and emotional) is like a never ending wheel - meaning whenever I am at one point on the wheel I know, at some time in the (probably very near) future, I will be at the exact other end.

Take this weekend for example.  I officially became 14 weeks pregnancy, 2nd trimester pregnant on Monday.  Over the past (pre-week 14) several weeks, I have generally felt pretty much less then stellar.  I had been in an almost constant state of nausea and have wanted nothing to eat besides pretty much unhealthy food (i.e. chili cheese fries!  REALLY?  I do not recall the time I genuinely wanted chili cheese fries at Sonic beside the past 14 weeks!).  Exercising has been out of the question... I just don't have it in me.  

Then came this past Saturday, a beautiful, glorious day.  I woke up feeling fine (amazing), went garage sale-ing with a good friend, ate something healthy (as salad! I have not been able to eat a salad in weeks!), and decided I felt well enough for a jog/walk around the neighborhood.  It was GREAT!  I felt healthy, happy to be moving, and unstoppable.  The thought "wow if this is what the 2nd trimester feels like, bring it on!" actually crossed my mind.  The wonderful day was wrapped up with a nice dinner date at Saltgrass with the hubby.  It was really a great day.  

Sunday morning I was determined to make the goodness last.  I had a breakfast of grapes and strawberries (yum!) and did some stuff around the house before it was time to head out.  15 minutes after my good, healthy, breakfast, I promptly got sick.  Very very sick.  The queasy feeling did not go away for the rest of the day.  I told myself "its okay, I just overdid it yesterday... the second trimester starts tomorrow and when it does, its going to rock!"  

Then came Monday... and Tuesday... and today, Wednesday... the icky feeling has still not passed.  I am pretty sure (aka - I am constantly praying) it will though.  Unfortunately Mr. Whimsy (the hubby - get it? my blogs name is Lindseys Whimsys... so that makes him Mr. Whimsy... anyway...) got the worst of my emotional low point yesterday.  And when I said he "got" I mean he enduring my crying non-stop saying "its supposed to be better, I am in the 2nd trimester now!  Why?!?!?".  Fun huh?  Especially for him (I am not a very pretty crier).

Anyway, today, as the nausea lingers, I am confident will be the last day of the first trimester blues.  It will get better.  I will make it through this.  I repeat, it will get better.  I will make it through this.  And if you made this through this long, depressing blog post, bless you.  Like I will end of on the  feeling like its the second trimester side any minute now, my blog post will also end up on the happy, woohoo, things are WONDERFUL side as well.  Very soon.  Perhaps in the next minute or so.  

To my mother and other child bearing women - I admire you.  

Also - despite the negatives mentioned above, I am very excited about bringing a baby into this world, growing the Whimsy (see, I did it again) family, and I KNOW we are incredibly blessed by God to have child in our lives.  I promise the next post (which will come sooner then this post did) will be more on the positive side!  

Big News!!!

Joe and I are expecting a new addition to our family July 2012!  We are very excited (and quite nervous) about it and know that God has a great plan for us.

My due date is July 30, 2012 and as of today I am 12 weeks along.  More (frequent) updates to follow, stay tuned!!!