Music, Books, Miles, Looks of September + Goals

I can't believe it's already the last day of September. How did that happen? It was such a busy month, as it always is, but overall it was a good month. My goals were to read more, go to spin and yoga and be productive/survive. I did a great job with productivity and yoga. I did not get to spin, and I definitely did not read more. There is always another month :) 

Music: I'm currently obsessed with All Kinds of Kinds by Miranda Lambert. I also love Mine Would Be You by Blake Shelton. It's a good month for that marriage if I was in charge, which I am. 

Books: My reading is at an all-time low right now. Every time I go to read, I just want to sleep. I'm even behind my year reading goal, which I don't think has happened ever since I first started making that goal. This month I read The Next Accident by Lisa Gardner and The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd. Both were good, but nothing to make me actually read. This month I'm going to aim for three books. I know I can do 3. Or should I say, I hope I can do 3! 

Miles:  I didn't run in September, which means I think I'm officially on a running hiatus until hopefully March, possibly April depending on when the baby comes. But, I have done a lot of walking AND a lot of swimming. I am still swimming outside in my beloved pond, even with the colder weather. We wear wetsuits so it's really just the initial shock and then it's pretty warm. We actually swam across the pond (1 mile) twice, and did several other 3/4 mile swims. I'm hoping we have a few more weeks to enjoy this beautiful view! 

Looks: 

The month began with the great "hide the bump" quest. Alternative names include: change outfit 67 times each morning, drive Eric crazy with "can you see the bump now? can you see it now?" questions. Thanks to a combination of TJ Maxx dresses found by my mom, the H&M dress found below, and just general luck, no one figured it out until I was ready. Whew! 

 The second part of the month involved a mixture between old favorites like the pink dress Caroline gave me last Christmas...

 

…and a small collection of maternity clothes I am just starting to experiment with. The photo below is my regular pants (with a Bella band) and a maternity shirt from Old Navy. 

I am still resisting maternity clothes a bit because I don't want to spend a ton on a whole new wardrobe, but I also don't want to be completely sick of the same 5 outfits come December and January. One of my friends gave me a total pep talk about maternity clothes the other day though, so I did do some shopping this weekend. I'm sure they will be appearing more and more in October, and it might not be my choice anymore! 

Also part of my looks were my boy/girl nails for our big ultrasound a few weeks ago. 

Goals for October:

1. Read 3 books. I won Becky's giveaway for 3 books, so hopefully this will motivate me! 

2. Say NO to 3 things. Life is getting crazy again (or was it just always?). I need to say no more. I am putting a number on it so I will be held accountable. 

3. Go to yoga at least one time per week. Go to spin class at least once. Let's try this one again! 

 

 

Looking Forward & Back: Fall Edition

It's officially fall, the cool mornings remind me every day! I have a love/hate relationship with fall. I love the weather, the leaves and I love, love the food. What is not to love about caramel apples, pumpkin and butternut squash? I do not love the end of summer freedom, the stress of the beginning of the new school year, and the teaching children how to stand in line and hold a pencil. Sigh. 

Looking Back

Today I won Becky's birthday giveaway! For some reason I have been really struggling with getting into books lately, so I'm really looking forward to having three books that Becky has RAVED about right on my book shelf reminding me to read and enjoy them :) 

Earlier this week I went for a chilly fall swim in my favorite pond. I am so just not ready to return to lap swimming, so I've been zipping up my wetsuit and powering through the initial cold to enjoy outdoor swimming as long as possible. 

Last week I ran a successful training for other teachers on a program I am still learning about myself. I was not too psyched to do it, but I was really happy when it turned out better than I expected it to. 

Last month Eric and I ended an awesome week at the Cape with a seal boat tour in Chatham. It was really cool to see the seals up close and learn more about them. I miss summer!

Looking Forward

Tomorrow my college roommate Ashley is coming to visit and we are celebrating her 30th birthday! A few years ago Eric and I were 30th birthday experts, it seemed we had one every week. Now, it's my friend's time to turn 30. This means, the return of the 30 glasses. Wahoo! 

This weekend I am looking forward to the many birthday celebrations planned. I am most excited about tailgating the BC football game, which is something I try to do at least once every year. 

Next week is my return to the Cape. I'm looking forward to some slightly cooler walks on the beach and just some overall relaxation. 

Next month Eric and I are hopping on a plane to Florida for a friend's wedding! Even though I love fall weather, it will be fun to put back on the summer clothes and maybe get a little bit of a last minute tan. I'm also looking forward to sitting by the pool or the beach with a good book. 

 

What are you looking forward to right now? 

Pregnancy Updates, Part 2

Thank you for the very encouraging comments regarding my first round of pregnancy updates. I hope you will notice a marked difference in my updates in the second trimester thus far (below). This is where I start to feel physically better and feeling well physically has always been a large help to me mentally. I have mentioned before that I sometimes have a hard time with the beginnings of things, it takes me some time to get used to things. Pregnancy was no different for me. It was very hard for me to get used to. I still have my bad days now… Eric can definitely vouch for this. But I think even he would agree that in the last few weeks he has seen much less of Emo-Kelly and Rage-elly and much more of an optimistic, and even sometimes excited version of myself. I am very grateful for this. I am very grateful for a lot actually… and I'll be blogging about all of that later. I decided it deserves it's own post. 

Week 13

It's really weird for me to divide my weeks on Wednesdays, I'm just not used to that. So my FIRST part of Week 13 was not my favorite, not my favorite at all.  I think my expectations were too high. Friends have told me that I probably would not start feeling a lot better this early, but I'm still really annoyed by the general understanding that "things get better" in the second trimester. They are not better yet. This week alone I've had several near throw up instances, usually involving brushing my teeth or waking up in the middle of the night. I also got my second terrible headache. I miss Advil just as much as I always thought I would. But, on a positive note, I did swim a mile twice this week. My swimming buddies and I have been building up to crossing the pond we swim at, and this week we did it twice. Pregnancy, for me, has been one thing I can't do after another, so it's nice to accomplish something brand new in fitness. And, in a second positive note, the second part of Week 13, I've started to see a very small light at the end of the tunnel. Time actually passes where I don't feel pregnant, aka exhausted and nauseous. I'll add a plus one for that :) 

Week 14

My newest problem (isn't there always one?) is prenatal yoga. The other night I enjoyed yet another pregnancy symptom, a painful early morning calf cramp. I hadn't exercised that day or the day before, so I think part of it was slightly less activity (though I was active both of those days) and less stretching. I always thought I'd go to yoga consistently when pregnant but I never realized how impossible it would be! My studio only has one prenatal class and it's on Sunday in the middle of the day. Even when I am home on a weekend, most of the time I can't go in the middle of the day. I've been twice all summer. Many other studios around don't have it at all, or their times are equally absurd. I've tried some of the online classes, but another dilemma is the absurdity of prenatal classes. Two days after I found out I was pregnant I tried my first video. Sometime around the seventh "point your baby towards the ____" I had to shut it off. Still trying to process having a baby!!! Now I'm past that, my the newest video I downloaded was okay until we get into tree pose and the instructor says "this pose reminds me of the placenta…" WHAT?! JUST LET ME WORKOUT. End rant. 

Actually Week 14 was a good week, minus the calf cramps and painful headaches, I'm starting to feel like a normal human again. I even felt the need to google what people actually like about pregnancy (rather than my usual google search of "I hate pregnancy."). I still completely don't agree with any of the things there are to like (people do shit for you… yeah great, I could just feel good and then do shit for myself…) but at least I felt the need to search it. 

 

Week 15

Let's get a little more optimistic about pregnancy here, shall we? I spent the vast majority of this week at the Cape, and as I've probably mentioned before, this baby loves vacation. I am slowly taking less frequent naps, and feeling better overall. The bump is starting to grow, which is a good thing (yay, baby is growing!), and a bad thing (yikes, how am I going to hide this at work?). 

 

Week 16

I had an uneventful 16 week check in with the doctor. She said I can most likely go to Florida in December, wahoo. Everything looked and sounded good, and I get an ultrasound in 3 weeks. Wahoo. Seriously, pregnancy is like living one ultrasound to the next. I'm very thankful that thus far all of my appointments have brought good news and everything is going well. I'm very realistic about all that can go wrong, so I'm always thankful when I learn that nothing has so far. I'm really starting to feel like a normal person again now. Hours go by without any clear symptoms, and I enjoy every minute of that time. 

 

Week 17

Since way back at Week 5/6, Week 17 marks my first week of full time teaching. In a lot of ways it went better than I expected, I think I ran on adrenaline for most of the week. I did barely move most of the weekend in recovery. I don't know how I would've done it if I had to teach full time during that first trimester, but now it's feeling very doable. I have plenty of energy, and my patience level is basically at normal levels I think. It was definitely not in those last few weeks of last year, even before I knew I was pregnant. 

 

Week 18

For the past few weeks I've been feeling *possible* baby movements, but nothing I was really convinced was an actual movement. On Day 2 of Week 18, I felt what I am 100% was baby flutters. I know from the 12 week ultrasound that Baby H loves to move (it's gotta be a boy ha ha) so I'm excited to continue to feel it. And also not call it IT anymore, because we will find out in Week 19 if this baby is a boy or a girl, wahoo! Also, I feel great, like a normal person again. Can we just stay like this until February? Please? 

I'm Having a Baby

Hi friends. Guess what? I'm pregnant. I tried to think of a fun way to tell you that, but I figured in the end I'd just come out and say it. I'll be 19 weeks tomorrow which means I have been keeping the secret in the blogland for a very long time. It's not because I don't trust and love you all, but because I was trying very hard not to freak out the kindergarten parents on day 1. They all know now and have been incredibly supportive, light years better than I ever could've imagined. 

Even though I had to wait quite awhile to break my news to the blog world, I didn't want to let the entire first half of my pregnancy go completely undocumented, so I've been taking (mostly) weekly photos and trying to write down a few thoughts each week. I actually do enjoy reading other updates, so hopefully you will not find mine incredibly boring :) 

Week 4

Here I am with Caroline after completing Baby's First Triathlon. I'm still blissfully unaware of what is happening inside of me, and at this point haven't even started to think anything is up. 

Week 5

Here I am at 5.5 weeks pregnant (and truth be told, I believe it's closer to 6, but we will go with the dating ultrasound). This is the DAY I took the pregnancy test and was immediately confused by the "plus" sign that was really one vertical line. Don't be concerned about the beer, I bought it- promptly dumped it out in the bathroom and refilled in with a water bottle I had in my purse. Believe it or not, this is the one and only time I fake drank during my pregnancy. Unless you count the numerous photos I took with beers on my trip so as not to raise suspicions on Facebook. 

Week 6

Soon after the Week 5 photo was taken pregnancy reality hit me and was followed by crippling nausea and nightly breakdowns. Week 5 and 6 were low points. Eric has always referred to my emotional side as Emo-Kelly, but this week also brought the birth of a new sidekick Rage-Elly, my angry alter ego. We did have our first ultrasound this week because my period (or lack there of) was not reliable enough to give us a due date. That turned out to be accurate because my due date would be one month earlier if we had not had the ultrasound. Huge fail. Baby looked like a blob, but it was our little blob. 

Week 7

I spent the beginning of Week 7 at work sitting in an office writing curriculum. This was a big step up from attempting to not vomit while dealing with children and by some stroke of luck my coworkers brought delicious bagels every day. Week 7 also brings the family trip up to Maine and the discovery that my baby LOVES vacation. I can't imagine where this trait comes from with Eric and I as parents, ha. I made the mistake of going home one day to tutor and the baby immediately rebelled. It's clear I already have a smart baby. 

Week 8

Our Maine trip finishes up (too fast) and I take my first prenatal yoga class this week. It's a little surreal to be in a room filled with super pregnant people, but everyone is very supportive of how terrible I'm feeling and it doesn't make me feel worse, so plus one for that. Despite nausea and daily naps, I am still working out pretty regularly. I swim at least 3 times a week, run 1-2 times a week and I just bought a Pure Barre Prenatal DVD which I will soon check out. I'm fine running as long as it's not hot, which unfortunately it frequently is. I also can't go five seconds without drinking water which can be inconvenient. There are mixed feelings about biking outside while pregnant (your balance can be off, which can lead to falls). I think this means Baby's First Tri was also his or her last, until they are old enough for a kids tri! 

Week 9

Let's call this the week of throwing caution to wind. The first day of this week was Eric and my third wedding anniversary. We celebrated by going up to Rockport, MA and enjoying a walk on a precarious jetty. Apparently my balance was not yet off, thankfully. Then, we hopped on a flight to Iceland, for what was supposed to be our "Last Hurrah" before trying to have a baby. I know, I know, if you want to hear God laugh tell him your plans :) In Iceland, we visited Blue Lagoon which is basically a giant hot tub, aka a big no no in pregnancy. However, I did some research and because it is cooler than a normal hot tub, it is supposedly safe in pregnancy. Even still, I didn't stay in for long and chugged water the whole time. Finished up the week up with a glacier hike, which of course should've been easy but was a bit of a challenge for out of breath in 10 seconds preggo Kelly. But, I felt really good the whole day and I guess baby is going to be just like Dad, because he or she loves a good risk. Lucky for him or her (but super annoyingly for me), everything seems to be a "risk" in pregnancy… fish more than twice a week, nail polish, any medicine, walking the wrong way… haha okay fine I made up the last one, but it really is absurd. Mommy guilt, Step 1: Pregnancy Guilt. Everything you do is going to ruin your baby for life. Enjoy :) 

Week 10

Baby and I hit the "double digits" in Austria. It was absolutely gorgeous, insanely relaxing, and the food was delicious. It was a good contrast to the constant smoke blown in the face that was Munich. Oh, and by the way, my balance was still fine :) 

Week 11

Week 11 is the return home and the beginning of traditional "pregnancy photos." I am so thankful to be home and even though baby does love vacation, I am starting to feel the tiniest bit better even when at home. Don't get me wrong, I'm still taking daily naps and had my worst ever headache this week (I miss Advil SO very much). We had our first official doctor's appointment this week and heard the heart beat for the first time. Even though I haven't gained any weight yet, I personally can see a baby bump. Eric and others who know me well, agree. 

Week 12

Even though there seems to be great disagreement about when the first trimester really ends (WTF can we agree on ANYTHING in pregnancy?!), I am going to declare Week 12 my last week of the first trimester. While in a triathlon, the swim is my favorite part, I am really hoping that I do not feel the same about the first trimester. This week we had an NT scan which looks from chromosomal abnormalities using an ultrasound and a blood test. We were very lucky that our risk came back extremely low 1/10,000 to be exact, and we got to see our little baby on the screen again. This was an "oh my god it's real, it's not just a crazy joke someone is playing on me" moment. The baby was no longer a blob. It was a baby, a baby who can wave, a baby who can sit "criss cross applesauce" so that the ultrasound tech can't get a good measurement, a baby who was ALL OVER THE PLACE the entire time, did not sit still for a second. How can all this be happening in my body and I can't even feel it?! Well I guess I can feel it, when I wake up at 4 am starving, or when I need a nap to survive the day, or when I almost throw up just because I'm brushing my teeth. Overall, a good ending to a "period of time" I am happy to say goodbye to. It's funny, when I look back at all the pictures, it doesn't look as bad as I remember it...

I'll be back soon with the rest of the weeks I missed. Spoiler alert, they get much more positive. Thanks for reading! 

 

September: Where Did You Come From?

It's the first week of school, so no long posts are going to happen. But I had some great highlights in August that I want to share. 

Visits: 

Unlike July, with it's trips to Maine, Iceland, Austria and Germany, August was spent much closer to home. Our only trips were to the Cape. Perfection. 

 

Accomplishments: 

As per one of my August goals, I did some decluttering. My desk looks a million times better than when I last mentioned it, yay! 

I also managed to cross my favorite pond (a 1 mile swim), 3 times! It was a good accomplishment, though I still prefer our slightly shorter swims, especially when we swim at night and I'm hungry for dinner :) 

Favorite Snacks: 

A new spin on my favorite cereal, Cheerios! I now eat them with unsweetened vanilla almond milk, blueberries and banana. 

 Our garden has been producing summer squash and zucchini in August. I've been enjoying the pizza version of these yummy veggies. It's super easy to make. Just slice the zucchini/squash, put in the oven on 400 for about 10 minutes. Take them out, put on some tomato sauce and cheese, and put back in the oven for about 2 minutes, just until the cheese melts. Delicious. 

Books:

I only read 2 books this month… what?! The first was Sisterland by Curtis Sittenfeld, author of American Wife and Prep. It was good, but not my favorite. I started our blog book club book, Ladder of Years, but hated it immediately and gave it up. I very rarely do this so I'm proud of myself for actually following through. I was rewarded with a wonderful book next, called Me Before You by Jojo Moyes. Absolutely loved this book and would highly recommend it, though maybe have some tissues available :) 

Goals for September: 

Not going to lie, I am so shocked September has actually arrived this quick I've barely considered goals. Here are a few I have off the top of my head. 

1. Yoga and Spin. Go to yoga at least three times. Go to spin at least twice. I aim low. I still want to keep up swimming a lot this month. 

2. Read more. 2 books is not enough.

3. Be productive and survive the first month of school :) 

Keeping it easy this month! How was your August?