34 Weeks - Late Again

I"m a little late on this weeks post again, but today is the 23rd, which means Rian will be here this time next month!  Time is just flying by now!

This week we were busy making preparations for Easter and the Easter Bunny.  Here are some pictures from the past week:

Regan was having a "picnic" at the table

Grandma Judy and Papa brought her a belated birthday gift - dress-up Minnie Mouse...she LOVES it!

She wanted Minnie to have a Green outfit like her

Cosmo wanted in on the action too

Kisses for Mr. Mo

Getting ready to dye Easter Eggs

The Preparation

Adding some colored "speckles" to her eggs

Showing off her colored hands when she was done... and a little blue dye in her mouth

The Finished Products

I will take some pictures tomorrow of what the Easter Bunny brought us, and hopefully it will be warm enough to have an Easter Egg hunt outside too.  Busy day tomorrow!  Go Sabres!

33 Week Belly Pic

Here we are at Week 33 - Regan is showing her belly too!

Close-up/33 Weeks with Regan for comparison

A nice smile for once...

Regan peed in the potty today but it was hard to get her excited about it - so I made a sticker chart

Showing off her butterfly sticker!

33 Weeks

"Baby’s senses are continuing to improve -- when light peeks in through your (extremely) stretched belly, those tiny eyelids and irises blink and dilate. And, baby can now recognize and react to simple songs… time to start practicing your lullabies! Growth (at least inside your womb) is starting to slow, and you may notice baby descend into your pelvis at the end of this month. "


6 weeks left until baby boy makes his arrival.  We went out to run some errands this weekend, and stopped and Babies R' Us to see if we could pick up some of the last few things we would need for the baby.  We walked out with NOTHING... so we decided that we were probably as prepared as we're ever going to be.


We had come fantastic weather this weekend and enjoyed getting a lot of stuff done outside.  Regan has been re-discovering all of her outside toys and swing-set... getting dirty and having a blast.  I will post some new pictures soon!

32 Weeks

This week was rather uneventful for us, given how exciting the past few have been.  I don't even have any pictures to share because Kevin had my camera all weekend.

Kevin and Colin left for Atlanta, GA on Friday to attend Wrestlemania.  Here is a picture of them at a promotional event.

As of today we have 47 days until Rians arrival!  This week I used our completion coupons to finish getting some of the things that we need for him and his room.  Grandma Judy bought him a bunch a cute outfits that need to be washed and ready.  Besides that I think we are pretty well prepared in advance this time around.  I'm sure there will be other little things that we will think of that we might need in the weeks after his arrival, but hopefully we've covered all the basics.

31 Week - Update

We are all recovered from the prior weeks illness, and I just got back from the doctor.  I gained 4 pounds in 3 weeks, and the Dr. told me I need to slow down the gain.  I have no idea how I gained so much, since I've been sick for 2 weeks, and not eating much.  Also, I passed my glucose test, so that's good news.  My belly in measuring 30.5cm - right on track and Rian is moving around like a break dancer in my belly!

I got my paperwork for the hospital, with all of my instructions on it.  It's starting to feel really official now!  Only 54 days to go!  I guess we need to get moving on picking up all the little odds and ends we will need before this baby comes!

Regan is TWO!!! / 31 Weeks (don't ask what happened to 30)

So this week turned out to be another eventful week in the Kerl household.  Hold onto your hats...

To kick it all off, Kevin and I had to go out of town for a few days, leaving Regan in the capable hands of the grandmothers.  By the end of the first day, all the grandparents were calling to tell me that Regan was not feeling well, and was running a fever, and having tummy troubles.  Luckily Kevin and I were coming home the next day, so they kept a close watch on her and she seemed to be doing fine.

They day after we got home was Regan's 2nd Birthday.  She was all excited when she woke up, and we sang happy birthday to her, and told her when daddy got home we would do cake and presents.  Regan and I were supposed to go to our usual library class, and I made cake pops shaped like little chicks for all the kids:

(Why, do you ask?  Because I'm super mom... and I was guilted into making something cool after the other moms brought in snacks.  Don't judge me...)

So that morning Regan celebrated getting dressed in her birthday shirt by ceremoniously throwing up all over it.  Great.  Into the tub she went; I sent the snacks to the library with Grandma who was working anyway.  Then Regan took a nap because she looked beat all of the sudden.  She woke from her nap to the tune of more vomiting, and another bath.  After that we just snuggled on the couch and watched TV, drank plenty of fluids.  I tried to explain to her that it was not her fault, because I think she was feeling guilty about making a mess of everything.  I told her it was a bummer, and that we would have a "do-over" of her birthday on Sunday when the family was planning on coming over for dinner and cake.

Regan napped on the couch for a couple of hours, and when she woke up she was feeling much more chipper.  She even asked me to take some pictures of her:

After daddy came home, Regan ate a little bit, and kept it down, so we decided to sing happy birthday and have cake - though I removed most of the frosting from her piece - just in case.

So after cake we let her open her presents from us.  We got her all of the stuffed food you could ever dream of from IKEA, and a Magna-Doodle... all of which she absolutely loved.

By then end of the day Regan was beat, and went to bed after the usual routine.  She slept though the night, only waking once, so we knew she was still feeling a bit under the weather.

The next day we found out that all the grandparents (with the exception of Papa) AND uncle Colin, were sick with a stomach bug... of course everyone blamed Regan for being the source, but Kevin and I felt fine, so we figured it might have been one of them who gave it to her.

That day we took Regan to the doctor for her 2 year check-up.  She had seemed to fully recover from her illness the day before, and they weren't concerned about it.  She checked out perfectly, of course.  Here are her current measurements:

Weight: 23# 7oz - 11%

Height: 33" - 25%

After the doctors we went our to lunch as a family.  I spent some time working on a cake for the party on Sunday.  I made cupcakes for Regan and Beth, since her birthday was Saturday.

Kevin stayed home from work just in case one of us fell ill to the dreaded disease that was going around, but we truly felt fine... until about 7pm that night.

Kevin succumbed to the porcelain throne first, with me following close behind at about 1AM.  Neither of us slept very well, and by 8AM we were calling for back-up.  Grandma & Grandpa were feeling better by then, so they agreed to take Regan for the day so we could sleep it off.

Thankfully by the next day we were all feeling much better, however, understandably, no one wanted to come over to our house for a party, so we cancelled the food, and put the cake in the fridge for a later day.  We spent party day Lysol-ing every surface imaginable and bleaching all the laundry.  Regan did get to open some gifts from Uncle Colin and Grandma and Grandpa, and her and Grandma shared a cupcake (mostly because they were the only two who felt up to eating anything.)  Here are a few pictures of her modeling her pretty dress she was going to wear for her party.  She loved having it on, and kept saying she was "fancy".

 

On top of all of that, I am 31 weeks pregnant today, which means I have exactly 8 weeks left till this baby is born!  I go to the doctor for a routine visit on Wednesday, so i'll post more then.

29 Weeks - Better Late Than Never

So this weeks blog post is almost a week late, but I have a reasonable excuse... I was dying and slow and painful death.

This past weekend started out great.  We had a get-together at our house to celebrate Derek and Kevin's birthdays, a little belated, with the family, and then Kevin and I went to our last hockey game of the regular season.  The next morning I woke up feeling like death.  I head a fever, chills, aches, pains, sore throat, stuffy nose... you name it.  Kevin went to work for a little bit in the morning, while I checked with my doctor to confirm that I was basically SOL, and just had to suck it up.  Thankfully Kevin came home shortly after Regan woke up from her nap and I was able to just moan on the couch & lay in bed for the rest of the day.

My fever broke at 3am the next morning and after that I was able to get a little rest, but it was difficult because my nose was completely stuffed up.  Of course the only medication I can take right now is Tylenol, which really didn't help at all with the fever or the achy-ness.  Thankfully Mom & Dad came home from Florida the next day and offered to take Regan for a while so I could sleep during the day, when I could breathe out of at least one nostril at a time.  Today I am finally feeling like I am on the mend, and had a mostly  normal feeling day.  I never want to be sick + pregnant + have a toddler, ever again.  I did manage to muster up enough energy to make corned beef and cabbage on Thursday, so St. Patty's Day or as Regan calls it "Happy Saint Rian Patricks day!") was not completely lost.

Ok, whine over...

Back to baby business.  This week we get a new monthly produce!

"Baby’s energy is surging, thanks to the formation of white fat deposits beneath the skin. (Have those kicks and jabs to the ribs tipped you off yet?) Baby is also settling into sleep and waking cycles, though -- as you’ve also probably noticed -- they don’t necessarily coincide with your own. Also this month, all five senses are finally functional, and the brain and nervous system are going through major developments. "

Rian has been rocking and rolling in-utero as of late.  He loves to simply push on my belly with even pressure for long periods of time.  I think he needs more room, because its feeling awfully cramped in there already.  My belly is trying to accommodate though - only 65 days left!:

Week 29 Belly - St. Patrick's Day

Regan and I still managed to have fun on St. Patrick's day.  We went to the library for our class and learned about colors.  She wanted me to take her picture, and we have been practicing her "nice smile" instead of her chin up in the air, eyes closed, smile.

Showing off her balloon from Wegmans, her favorite part of every trip

the "other smile" - showing off her sunglasses

Uncle Colin recently taught her to wave her hand in front of her face and say "you can't see me"... thanks Colin...

Friday we went for our first inaugural trip to Kone King, this was Regan's first time eating a cone herself

She did a really good job, ate the whole thing, and was really happy about it!

Today we went up to the outlets, and stopped at the Falls

This was Regan's first visit, she liked the waterfall, but LOVED the rainbow it was making

Regan and Daddy at the Falls

I promise I will update on Monday of this week, even though there won't be much to report.

28 Weeks

This week , I think the third trimester has caught up with me already.  I am officially uncomfortable.  Everything hurts, my joints click-pop-snap every time I move.  I'm not getting any quality sleep lately either because I can't get comfortable.  I feel like it's just too soon for me to want to call it quits!  I was hoping for a few more good weeks, but alas, I guess it wasn't meant to be.

I had another doctors appointment today, and my glucose tolerance test.  Everything went really well, and me and the baby look great.  The midwife recommended that I get a pelvic support belt if I get anymore uncomfortable.  So far I've gained 20 pounds total, and the baby is about 2 pounds of that.  We also set a date for my c-section and someone will be calling me to set it up soon!  Looks like Rian will be making his debut on May 23rd if all goes according to plan.

This week we had a visit from Rachel, Giulianna & baby Rhyon.  The girls had a blast playing with each other this time around, they were so cute!

Regan let Rhyon play with some of her baby toys. 

The girls had a tea party and gave tea to everyone

The girls hanging out in Regan's room

Here is a cute little video that Rachel took with her phone.  The girls were fooling around, then we finally got them to sing a song

So now I go to the doctors every three weeks until 34 weeks, then every two weeks until the final two weeks.  Hopefully I get good results back from my glucose test too.  Hopefully this next week in kind to my poor broken body.

27 Weeks

Week 27 marks the beginning of the third trimester!  We're in the home stretch!

This week marked my return to the chiropractor, after about a 2 month hiatus.  I was feeling extremely "out of whack", so I had an adjustment on Wednesday and it made a world of difference.  This is just about the time I started having back trouble when I was pregnant with Regan, so I'm anticipating a lot more discomfort in the coming weeks.

Next Tuesday is my next doctors appointment and my glucose tolerance testing.  I am a littler nervous about this, even though I passed with flying colors last time, I feel like I haven't been as good with my diet this time around.  I almost feel like ceremoniously consuming as many carbs as I can in the coming week, just in case the privilege is taken away from me after this test.

Week 27

The baby seems to be doing really well this week.  I have a feeling hes settled into the head down position, because I'm feeling more pelvic pressure, and lots more kicking high in my belly.  Most days he's pretty active, especially when I lay down to go to bed.

Regan is doing well this week too.  Inching her way toward her second birthday, we have noticed lately that she has become a lot more "self aware".  She has no problem telling you what she wants, when she wants it now - so we are working on her please & thank yous like crazy.  Patience is another thing we have been working on with her.  Every day I get a little bit more of a glimpse of the dreaded "terrible two's".  Granted she is far from terrible, but it's definitely not a attitude we are used to with her.  She has always been so complacent and easy going.  Hopefully we can nip some things in the bud now, before they get out of hand.

Speaking of things getting out of hand, I would like to give a shout out to my husband and the wonderful genetics that he has passed to Regan with regards to her hair:

This is what I wake up to every morning... Don King would be proud.  The straight/curly/long-in-the-back/short-in-the-front combo is proving difficult to tame.  I'm pretty sure Regan uses more hair products then Kevin and I combined on a daily basis.  Combo shampoo/conditioner with built in detangler, spray it down with a water bottle, add in spray-in detangler, try to comb it out, towel dry, try to comb it in order or put the top in a pony tail, hairspray.  And repeat.

26 Weeks/23 Months

This past week was an eventful one for Regan because she spent two nights away from Mom & Dad.  We had to take a trip for Kevin's work, so Regan stayed with the grandparents overnight, one night each.  She did great, barely missed us at all.  On Wednesday night she stayed over at Grandma Judy and Papa's house, played with Jack and all of her toys there, and slept like a big girl on the fold out couch.  The next day Grandma took her to see all the animals and they went for a walk with Jack down the street and saw Wendy.  Thursday night she stayed at our house with Grandma Gannon.  The next day when Mom & Dad came home late at night, Grandma looked exhausted, but Regan was ready to tell us about all the fun things she did that week.  So we got to hear all about it before she went to bed.

Kevin in front of Charm City Cakes! - We flew in and out of Baltimore

On Sunday, Regan got to go to her first Sabres game!  Even though we didn't bring home a winner, she still had lots of fun, and Grandma and Papa were there too!  She was clapping and cheering and shouting "Go Sabres!"

When we first got there Sabretooth was coming down from the ceiling, she was really overwhelmed!

Watching the game with Papa

Also, Regan will be 23 Months old on Thursday!  One month away from being two!  I can't believe how fast time has flown.  She has flourished leaps and bounds, every week it seems.  She is so smart, and isn't afraid of showing off her skills! Time to start planning a birthday party!

On the baby front this week, things have really started to get uncomfortable for me.  My back and hips hurt like crazy, and it feels like someone is trying to rip my pelvis in half.  I'm pretty sure that Rian has moved head down, because I'm getting a lot of pressure, and starting to feel kicks higher and higher up my belly.  We are officially into double digits in the countdown!  In two weeks I go for my glucose tolerance test, and hopefully we can schedule my c-section soon so we have a date to plan around.

I forgot to update the produce last week!

"Let your spouse put an ear to your belly -- he might be able to pick up baby's heartbeat (no stethoscope required). Inside the womb, the formation of tiny capillaries is giving baby a healthy pink glow. Baby's also soaking up your antibodies, getting the immune system ready for life outside the womb. Eyes are forming, and baby will soon perfect the blink -- perfect for batting those freshly grown lashes."

25 Weeks

Well, today at 25 weeks, we are officially in double digits until this baby is here!  I know it says 105 days, but since the baby will be born a week early, there is less than 100 days left!

In celebration of this milestone, we decided to reveal the name we've chosen for our baby boy.  We hung the letters in his room this week, and made it official:

His middle name will be Patrick.  Many of you may wonder why we went with an alternate spelling for his first name.  Our reasoning was simple...we liked the name Ryan, but we wanted to pay homage to both of the Grandfathers.  Kevin's fathers name is Brian, so we simply dropped the B and made my Dads name the middle name.  Rian Patrick Kerl.

Regan is already in love with her little brothers name, and refers to him by name when we ask her who's in mommy's belly, or who's room this is.

Secondly, I must address the sudden development of the sports theme for the room.  We had initially agreed that Kevin wasn't allowed to do sports, and I wasn't allowed to do animals.  That all went out the window when Kevin found this sports bedding set on super clearance at Target, and I had a weak moment.  I was just so excited that Kevin was so excited about it, so I caved.  Now, slowly, sports are infiltrating every aspect of his room.

Now I have to go back to eating the sponge candy my wonderful husband got me for Valentines Day...though  I should probably save it for after I find out if I have gestational diabetes...

24 Weeks

I had a doctors appointment this morning, and there's nothing exciting to report.  Baby boy is doing well, and measuring right on track.  His heartbeat was about 160 today.  So far I've gained 15 pounds - I'm expected to double that by the end, and the baby only makes up about 2 pounds of that right now!

Here is a video of Regan having fun with bubble wrap at Grandmas house last week:

23 Weeks

Well, this week I'm a day late in updating, but that's ok because there's not much to report.  There are no more weekly produce comparisons... but I'm 23 weeks pregnant, and baby boy has had the hiccups on and off all morning.  This is the first time I have distinctly felt hiccups with him.

Hopefully this weekend, between all the Super bowl preparations, we can get some work done on the nursery and Regan's big girl room, and I can post pictures of both next week.

This past weekend, we went out to Papa and Grandmas to visit because Daddy was out of town all week.  Regan got to play in the snow with Papa and Derek and Daddy.  She loves the snow so much!  Then later we played a little bit of Wii Sports & Wii Fit, and Regan loved it!  She was cheering for everyone when they knocked down pins while bowling, and she even tried the downhill skiing and the soccer.

This week we went to play in the snow at Grandmas Gannon's House too!

Grandma showed off some of her drawing skills

On Sunday, on a whim we got tickets last minute to the last show of Disney on Ice

Regan loved it!  She spent the whole first act on her feet and dancing!