One Month Old!

Ryenne is officially one month old! Well actually she made four weeks yesterday, but tomorrow is July 5th, a month from June 5th...

Anyway, I realized that we hadn't gotten any pictures of the three of us together. I needed to remedy that right away, so off into the backyard we went! We took a few pictures, but this one was my favorite. She was sleeping through the entire thing, so we didn't get any with her eyes open. We'll have to try again another time.

This afternoon we went to Wal-Mart and K-Mart to get some of the necessities. She was such a good girl. We're so lucky that she likes to ride in the car! She's also loving having her baths. She gets upset when I take her out of the water and put clothes on her!

3 Weeks!!

Well actually she made 3 weeks yesterday, but we were having a bt of a fussy day!! Here's some updated pix of the munchkin!

Milestones

Oh the little girl is growing fast! Her hair is starting to get longer, and it's changing color - more brown now than black. Her belly button is almost all the way healed, and she had her first bath yesterday! She didn't like it much...

Peter went back to work yesterday and I had my first full day with her. She was such a good girl - although she really didn't sleep much in the past few days so I was extremely tired. Fortunately for me, mom came to my rescue today and was with Ryenne for 3 hours while I got some much needed sleep. Boy did it feel good!

Ryenne is getting really good at moving around. She can roll onto her side, and she scoots in bed. She's such a big baby - it feels almost like I didn't get a newborn - just went straight to a three month old baby! haha

I'm having so much fun bonding with her. I love it when she makes googoo eyes at me and we just stare at each other. She is so incredibly beautiful. I still can't believe that I made her. Seriously... the most miraculous thing ever!

2 Weeks Old!

My little monkeybuns is 2 weeks old today! She is such a sweet girl - she's so alert and is already scooting in bed. She's quite an eater - she will nurse for an hour at a time - a bit draining on me - but what she wants, she gets!

We had a wonderful Father's Day yesterday. Some of our friends threw a nice BBQ party and got to meet Ryenne. It was a lot of fun because we hadn't seen many of them for so long.

All is well!

Been a busy few days! Meant to come on by and post earlier, but I was so tired I used my free time to sleep. =)

Ryenne had her first big outing yesterday (wish I got a picture of her in her stroller!). We had my first doctor appointment, an appointment for her, a visit to Nana and Pupu's house, a visit to Peter's old co-workers at Maui Medical Group, and then a short stop at Sears to buy her some footie pajama's for night-time. She did so well! She loves riding in her carseat (puts her right to sleep) and she barely fussed the entire day - well, except when she was hungry.

The breastfeeding is going so much better. I am still using the nipple shield even though the lactation consultant told me not to. It's made my life so much easier, feedings so much easier, and while my nips are raw, raw, raw, it's helping with that too. I know that I'll wien her off the shield when I'm ready. For now, I have to do what feels right for me and her.

My cesarian cut is a little infected - so I have to take antibiotics. I'm kinda bummed about that. The doctor said that it won't have any impact on Ryenne, but really... I think anything that I take impacts her.

She is an amazing baby. She is lifting her head already, and at night she scoots her little body so close to mine that when I wake up, she's all snuggled next to me with the most content look on her face. I could just stare at her all night, but then soon realize that I'm a walking zombie and I go back to bed. LOL.

She's waking up now! Time for a diaper change, a sponge bath, and a fresh onesie.

I had a moment to be artistic

A couple pictures of my beautiful little girl... I had a moment to be artistic. I think I'm going to have to get these two images framed. =)

Birth announcements are being ordered and will be mailed out soon! Please let me know if you want any prints with your announcement! My email is mariah@mariahmilan.com

She's 5 Days Old!

Wow I can't believe it's been 5 days already. I've been feeling great and moving around really well. The only time I feel a little sore is when I have to get out of bed.

Being a mom is great. I still can't get over how in love I am with my daughter. I could stare at her all day long! I've been singing to her - the first song that came to mind was "You Are So Beautiful" by Joe Cocker and Peter and I sing it to her everyday.

The breastfeeding drama is coming to an end I think. Today we made progress! She (hesitantly) latched on and nursed twice today. Mom helped a lot, and also a little silicone thing made by Medela also helped her latch on. Talk about a big sigh of relief! I didn't want her to be a bottle baby (no offense to anyone who bottle feeds!).

It's now midnight... officially Sunday June 11th. Mine and Peter's special day - our 9th anniversary!

Ryenne just fell asleep... off to bed for me!

NEW PICTURES ARE BELOW IN SEPARATE POSTS.... KEEP LOOKING DOWN!

Mommy & Ryenne

Daddy & Ryenne Snuggling

Emptying the Diaper Genie!

Look at all those diapers!!

Sleeping During a Diaper Change!

Ryenne & Uncle Nick

Pictures!

The picture function went down yesterday... here's some pics for all of you who are curious!!

Ryenne is Here!

Ryenne Alicia Grace Waiwaipuhia Dagupion made her grand entrance into the world on June 5, 2006 at 6:21pm!

I was having a lot of pelvic pressure over the weekend and decided to go to Kaiser on Monday to be checked out. After being monitored, we discovered I WAS having regular contractions, but wasn't feeling them, and was dialated almost to 4 centimeters.

Knowing the approximate size of the baby, Peter and I, as well as the doctors, felt that a C-Section was our safest option. We didn't want to risk her getting stuck in the birth canal, as shoulder distotia is a large possibility with a baby of her size.

We had a choice of going right in, or waiting until Friday. Not wanting to wait until Friday with all the discomfort, we opted to go right in! I called Peter at work and let him know to meet me at the hospital (boy did he make it there quick!).

I went into prep and it took 7 spinal attempts before they finally got me numb. Going numb was one of the strangest sensations I have ever felt! Peter got to come in and witness her coming out, although no cameras were allowed. Once the doctors got her out, the room was alive with uproar as they all started taking bets on her weight. It was hilarious! Peter was all smiles, and once I heard her cry, it was such an amazing feeling I got all teary.

They whisked her away after a quick glance and I was sewn up and sent to recovery. Once I got out, I got to see her and hold her. Now I understand the instant love between parent and child. It's an emotion that I couldn't even begin to comprehend before.

She is 21.5 inches long and a whopping 9lbs, 10oz! She has a beautiful head of hair... she is our little monkey!



C-Section patients are supposed to stay in the hospital for 3 nights. I was NOT a happy camper in the hospital. It was very difficult for me to be without Peter in the night. I started walking the halls the morning after the C-Section. I spoke with the doctor, and got to come home at 12noon today - only a day and a half in the hospital! WooHoo!! It feels so great to be home!

We are having some difficulties with breast feeding. Because of her size, she is a HUNGRY baby. My milk hasn't yet come in, but we are having success with her latching on and getting the colostrum - but she's still hungry afterward. So hopefully the milk will come in soon!

Nothing to report yet...

It's Sunday and nothin's really going on just yet. I was hoping that something would happen. But just wanted to keep everyone posted!

Ryenne, you're being evicted!

We had our 39+1day appointment today. I can sum up the appointment in two words: I'm SHOCKED.

I knew that I was measuring big, but thought maybe I had a lot of amniotic fluid or something. But today Dr. Rodgers decided to do an ultrasound to see just how big little Ms. Ryenne is getting. She is measuring on the ultrasound... *hold your breath*... 9 pounds, 7 ounces! Good Gracious Batman... that's just insane!

She did say that the ultrasound is plus or minus about 10%. So Ryenne could be in the high 8's or even closer to 10 pounds. There's no way to know until delivery.

I am dialated to 3 centimeters but Ryenne is still carrying really high. If I go into labor SOON, I still have a chance of giving birth vaginally, but if she continues to stay put, we will need to intervene with a C-Section. I really don't want a C-Section, but I'll do whatever I need to make sure that she stays safe as well as myself.

So that's the update for today. Please all who read this, send vibes to get her out already! LOL

Carrot Cake

I had a strange dream that I had tons of pregnant friends and they all gave birth and got to eat carrot cake with cream cheese frosting, and I was the only one who hadn't yet given birth and I wasn't aloud to eat the cake! So it makes me REALLY want some darn carrot cake with cream cheese frosting!!! Oh the strange hormones I tell you! :P

Ryenne's Room!

Her beautiful room is just about complete. The room would be nothing of what it is if it weren't for all the help from dad, and most especially, from mom who helped make the room a reality and put in a lot of time to get it just how I envisioned it!! I can't wait for Ryenne to enjoy her beautiful room!

38 Week & Pepe Pics!

38 Weeks, 1 day. And had my doc appointment today and they said I am measuring 42 weeks! Holy Hell Batman!!
Introducing the new mommy mobile, "Pepe"!!! Isn't he cute??

Pepe is Here!

Went to Young Brother's this morning and picked up my new car. His name is Pepe and he's the red chile pepper car!

I meant to take a picture, but it was so hot today that I slept through the entire afternoon. I'll post a pic tomorrow!

It's a waiting game!

Boy it's a hot day today! I'm just hangin out at home being lazy. Well I just feel so exhausted, so I guess I'm not being LAZY. Just feeling really BIG like a giant blueberry (think of Violet in Charlie & the Chocolate Factory). I'm ready for Ryenne to come out already! I think she has other plans though because she's really enjoying kicking me. Or maybe she's waiting for my car to arrive??

Darn those veins!

Oops... sorry I haven't posted in a bit. Things have been going well - normal for the most part. I had some varicose veins pop out of the bottom of my tummy the other day and those buggers are friggen PAINFUL!

Luckily I have an awesome mom who went out and bought me a maternity belt for support and it helps me IMMENSELY! (Thanks Mom!)

On the car front... some good news - yay! We called Honda dealers all over the state and Hilo Honda is selling us the car for the price we wanted! Well, $200 more for shipping but big deal, yeah? So the extra effort saved us about $2,000 and the car will be here on the 23rd hopefully. I'll be sure to take pictures of my new ride when it gets here.

Had my 37 week appointment this morning. Baby girl's heartbeat was great and she had fun kicking the doppler. So now it's really just a waiting game! Dr. Day said she's big enough to come out anytime. Hopefully sooner than later cause I'm gettin uncomfortable!

Goodbye my friend...

The day has come to say goodbye to my super speedy, beautiful Honda Civic Si. I didn't realize how hard it would be to say goodbye to my dear friend, who've I'm come to know as "Speedy" over the past 6 years.

I have so many great memories with this car. I bought it just before Peter and I got married, when I had my first "adult person job" at the Four Seasons and at the time, it was the biggest check I'd ever written (for the down payment). Driving it couldn't be beat - the clutch, the shifter, the wind in my hair with the sunroof open, the rev of the engine as I pushed it, oh how it corners like it's on rails!

I know now that there's no way I can keep it. It's not a mommy car - not the safest car - and it would be so difficult to get Ryenne in and out of the backseat. I'd probably break my back. But still, it was so hard letting go today.

Peter found a great buyer for the car - a guy who does auto detailing and was thrilled to be able to buy it. We decided to meet today at 3:30pm in Kahului and as soon as I got off the phone with him, I started bawling. I got into the car and cried all the way to Kahului. I took it on the windy road behind the airport to get my last few 'rally runs' out of it and had to stop along the way because I was crying so hard.

I felt so embarassed the way I was crying in front of the new buyer. He asked if I was Ok and I said "yes". It was just really hard letting go and giving up the keys. I guess the feeling that I can relate to is like a loved one is moving far, far away. God that sounds so stupid that I feel that way about a car, but that's how I feel.

Now it's time to be practical and get something that's family friendly. I just hope that I can at least feel a little of that driving adrenaline that I love so much and I hope that Ryenne shares that same enthusiasm as me.

So now my "Speedy" has a new home and owner and we have the Jetta and Scooby. The Jetta needs a LOT of TLC if we're going to use it for a while with baby. The Honda Fit, while a great choice, is just out of the pricerange for now. The demand is just so high that the dealerships aren't parting with them for reasonable amounts of money. We'll see how it all goes... still got some time.

Are They Dumb??

So we went to Island Honda this morning to work out a deal on the Honda Fit. The MSRP is $15,970 + $550 Destination Fee. I totally understand the destination fee cause it's the shipping to Hawaii. The dealer invoice is $15,290, so the dealer would make a quick $600 something on the sale. Anyways, I wanted a couple accessories and offered $17K CASH - I'd write the check right then and there. Those dodo heads didn't take it!! They wouldn't go a penny below $17,900!!!

What they're asking is WAY too much. It's not like the car is a high-end auto or anything. It's meant to be a cheap, functional car.

So we walked out. I thought for sure they'd take the cash. Ah well... I'll figure out a way to get what I want!! =)

The Fit It Is!

Well I've been thinking the past couple days about our car situation. While the Rav has a lot of really nice features, the Honda Fit has everything I need and is $6,000 cheaper - so it's da winner! Plus I just like turning on my Dave Chappelle voice and going "One, two, three, four, FIT". LMAO. Ok... if you don't watch the Chappelle Show you won't get that AT ALL! hahaha

I think we're going to Honda tomorrow to negotiate for one. They have a white one and a blue one and I'm not sure which one to get. The salesman we spoke to the other day was a very nice, older gentleman, so when we go back tomorrow I'm going to have to turn on my unemotional negotiator mode. Poor man... doesn't know what's coming.

I'm hanging out in Napili today with my father-in-law and nephew Landon. It's a hot day and I'm feeling a little swollen. Perhaps I will go do some online shopping??? That might be fun. It's about another 4 hours until Peter comes home...

Doc Apt & Test Drives

Our doctor appointment this morning was good. Baby is doing great, has a wonderful heartbeat, and is movin around plenty. Saw a new doctor today - Dr. Day - very nice man.

We visited with Nana for a while and she's so excited about the baby coming. I can't wait for Ryenne to meet Nana and Pupu!

Afterward, we went to the mall so I could find some shoes for Landri's wedding tomorrow and ya know what??? My feet are SO WIDE I couldn't fit into ANY shoes! I couldn't believe it. That's never happened to me before. I guess I never noticed cause I just wear slippers. Anyway, we went to Old Gravy and they had some cute, cheap espadrilles and those fit me (thank goodness!) so I bought those.

We also test drove a few cars today. I think we have a solid buyer for my beautiful, gorgeous Civic Si (Not a Mommy car) so we went in search of a mommy car. My top two picks are the Honda Fit and the Toyota Rav4. I think I'm leaning more toward the Fit because it's much less expensive but has a lot of great features and TONS of airbags. I think I'll need to test drive them again before I make a final decision. Please feel free to weigh in your opinions!

Oh yes... by the way, a HUGE congratulations to our friends Kainoa & Joanne on the birth of their Cinco De Mayo baby boy Ka Hoku who was born today (a very cool birthday to have!).

35 Weeks Update

The crib is put together! Yay!! Peter put it together today. We are going to get the mattress in there soon and Mom is toiling away at the crib set (which is going to be so cute!).

We have a Dr. appointment tomorrow and I'll post more then. =)

34 Week Update

Yahoo! 34 weeks! Things are going very good. I'm having energetic days and not so energetic days. Ryenne's room is coming along beautifully thanks to all the help from Mom and Dad. I think it's going to be the prettiest baby room I've ever seen.

According to online websites, babies at 34 weeks are about 4.7 pounds and almost 18 inches long! She is putting on lots of fat right now and probably has all her hair too (my little monkey).

She enjoys kicking me very hard and sometimes I can feel a foot stick out (usually closer to my side). As we approach May, I realize that we're getting closer and closer to her being here! I can't wait!! It could be 4 weeks, it could be 6 weeks!!

Making some progress...

Mom has been working hard at painting Ryenne's room and it's really almost done!! The colors are amazing - I'm so in love with them. The chair rail goes up tomorrow. We picked up the crib and will be able to set it up soon! I can't wait to see the room 'all done'!

I was feeling very lethargic today. I think I'm still anemic. Been taking my vitamins but obviously I'm not getting enough iron. So I have some cast iron skillets coming my way from Mom and I'll cook with those and that should help a bit I think.

It was a beautiful day in Haiku today... no rain - just sunshine and clear skies!

Just a few pics...

More Updates

We went on a tour of the maternity ward at the hospital the other day. Very informative I must say. I still don't want to have to stay there very long! LOL... I dunno.. something about hospitals.

We also had some pregnancy photos taken and I'm very happy with the results. I'll post those separately...

Letsee, I'm 33 weeks along now and had a good Dr. appointment this morning. Got to hear that wonderful heartbeat. Ryenne is head down already and definitely moving around quite a bit. I think she thinks it's hilarious to beat on my bladder whenever she gets the chance.

Meanwhile, my ice cream obsessions continue and it's almost the only thing I want to eat. LOL. Well.. ice cream and chocolate milk. hehe =)

Got a few things for her room today - some beautiful vintage looking flower fairy wall hangings and a chair rail and paint. Mom is so graciously going to paint the room and it's going to be so cute! Once it's all done, I'll definitely post pictures.

Thanks to "Da Gang"

Peter and the gang surprised me last night with a Pepper themed baby shower! It was such a great surprise and it was great seeing everyone.

Aris, Heidi, BJ, Rodel, Mar, Brandon, and Floyd, thanks so much for such a wonderful surprise and putting so much thought into the Pepper theme!

Sure wish I had my camera!!! =)

Peter has the flu =(

Poor Peter has been up all night with the flu and isn't feeling any better today. I'm trying to help him as much as I can without contracting the flu myself. Poor guy... I feel so bad that he's miserable. It's been a long time since he's been sick, so when he does it's just not good at all.

Almost There... (and updates)

I only have one more family photo session and one more wedding and then I'm officially on maternity leave! WooHoo!!

It feels so great because I'll be able to concentrate on getting Ryenne's room ready and I'll feel so much more prepared.

Today was such a lazy day for me. It's funny - sometimes I have high energy days and sometimes low energy days - today was a LOW ENERGY day. I didn't get anything accomplished at all (but I did have a good 4 hour nap!).

Tomorrow I'll be working on taxes (blah) and getting some stuff done so I don't have to worry about it later in the week.

Had some killer watermelon for dinner tonight. It was fabulous! =)

**edit for Auntie Aura**

Friday's appointment was more fetal monitoring. Of course Ryenne was moving like crazy all morning and then we get to Kaiser and... nothing. I think she hates going to the doctor. She barely moved when I was on the fetal monitor, so they sent me down for an ultrasound just to check her out. Then she started banging on the u/s wand and the tech had a hard time because she was moving so much. She is measuring big at just over 4 pounds already! The tech wasn't very nice - we got no pictures and she pushed too hard on my tummy and I got a bruise =(

A Scare & A Purple Sky

Had a little scare today... Ryenne really didn't move all day long and that had me worried. So I went to the doctors and they had me on the fetal monitor for a while. It was very reassuring to hear her heart beating, but she's remained pretty inactive today. I'll be going back on Friday for a check-up. Maybe she's just being lazy??

On a different note, the weather was extremely unique yesterday. It was rainy and the clouds turned an intense purple around sunset time. This image was taken from the front window. The picture doesn't even do the purple justice. It was amazing.

Ryenne's First Piece of Mail!

Ryenne got her first official piece of mail from Grammalini in Reno! She got a very cute dolly, a super soft green blanky, a beautiful outfit, a onesie, and a pink pair of shoes!!

Thank you Grammalini!!!

Dexter was very upset that he couldn't snuggle in the green blanket. You can see him pouting in one of the pictures. LOL

30 Week Doc Appointment

Just had my 30 week appointment this morning and they said I'm 30 weeks 2 days, which I'm a little confused about because according to my calendar I'm 30 weeks tomorrow. I was a little baffled by my weight - I actually lost 3 pounds since my last apt 3 weeks ago (?) but have no clue as to why cause I've been eating everything I want!

We got to hear Ryenne's heartbeat just beating away. Such a wonderful sound! Then we went to Fran's and I had some banana pancakes that were out of this world and stole a few bites of Peter's Loco Moco.

I am SO exhausted today. I think I'll take a nap in just a bit. I'm sure Chico and Dexter will want to snuggle with me. Peter's working 3-11p so I'm just chillin at home by myself today.

Dancing...

Peter got a new cellphone that plays music - I think it's called a Slvr or something like that. Anyways, we put on some music and put the phone on my tummy. Ryenne had fun kicking it and it felt like she was dancing! The phone bounced around on my tummy - pretty darn cool!

29 Weeks

29 Weeks! Although I was very full from brunch and wearing a baggy shirt so you can't see my tummy too well. But still...getting bigger and rounder! heehee!

Kapalua Bay Hotel 03/26/06

We went on Sunday morning for our last Sunday Brunch at the Kapalua Bay Hotel. It's being torn down to make room for timeshares (YUCK!). It's so sad because it's such a landmark hotel.
The view from our table

10 More Weeks??

I can't believe I'm 29 weeks along already. It's quite possible that Ryenne could be here in the next 10 weeks! I feel so unprepared! Her room isn't even ready yet...

Last night there was a huge thunderstorm and we had to stay out on the West Side. It was nice because Ryenne was moving a lot and Peter got to feel her kicking him. I wish that he could feel her the way that I do, and I know he feels that way too. It's amazing to see his eyes light up everytime she bumps and taps his hand.

I Blame It All On McDonalds!!!

Ah what a day... a LONG day! I had a photo shoot this morning with a really nice family and another photo shoot this afternoon for sunset with another family. I decided to leave Haiku around 3pm so I could go to my in-law's for a few minutes before my sunset shoot.

On the way, I was STARVING. Having no cash, I stopped at McDonald's on Dairy Rd to grab a McChicken and some chocolate milk and pay with my credit card. The drive through line was crazy so I decided to go inside - long line there too. Only one register open... about 15 minutes later, it's finally my turn and the register has a sign on it "Credit Card Machine Broken". My heart sinks into my empty tummy. I ask the lady if she could ring me up on the register next to her cause that machine wasn't broken. "NO". Ok... sooo I get no food?? "NO - NEXT IN LINE!". I walked out of McD's, got into my car, and started bawling. I realize this is very overdramatic, but I was STARVING and the lady at McD's was rude, rude, rude!

So I had wasted about 20 minutes and was still starving. Now I was cutting it close to my photo shoot so decided to head straight for the West Side. I couldn't stop crying, and I was thinking of the nasty letter I was going to write to McDonalds when I saw blue lights flashing behind me. OH MY GOD... I'm being pulled over for speeding! For anyone who knows Kuihelani Hwy, it's basically a FREEWAY with a speed limit of 45mph - the most ridiculous thing on this planet - but I was going 69 according to the officer's speedgun. So by this time my tummy is starving, my face is welled with tears, I'm hyperventilating as I'm trying to find my insurance card and registration... and I got a ticket for $177. HOLY CRAP! Writing this now, I can see the humor in all of this, but at the time it was definitely NOT funny.

I made it to my photo shoot on time - it was a good session with a beautiful sunset. And Mommy Marissa made me beef stew for dinner which was really nice.

But I still blame all the bad stuff on McDonalds and they're definitely getting a nasty letter from me!

28 Week Picture Updates!

Ryenne's growing!
We went to Kapalua Bay and went swimming and it was so awesome! It was such a beautiful afternoon and I floated and floated!

Peter's Practicing...

Landon loves snuggling with Uncle Peter!
Our handsome nephew Landon is four months old!

Glucose Test Update

YAY! I passed my glucose test! I was so nervous because Kaiser left me a message to call them back and they said they would only call if I hadn't passed the test. I called them back and the nurse said that I passed and they were just calling because I am anemic. Ok... anemic I can handle - easy to fix. HUGE sigh of relief!

27 Weeks 2 Days

While I certainly don't look my very best, I just wanted to post a new belly picture of my ever expanding mid-section!

We went to the Haiku Flower Festival this morning and ate Chow Fun and looked at the crafts and some of the plants. It was fun and I'm sure something we'll want to bring Ryenne to someday to play on the big floats and stuff. Fun!

27 Week Update

Here I am... the LAST week of the second trimester - HOLY BEEP!! This is going by so fast now!

We had a doctor appointment yesterday morning which started out with the glucose test. I had to drink this orange syrupy stuff that was so DISGUSTING! Then we went up to my doc appointment and it was with Dr. Rodgers which was pretty cool because she's the one who referred us out for IVF. So it was nice to see her and she was excited to see my big belly.

We got to hear Ryenne's heartbeat for a minute and everything is measuring really well. My uterus is actually measuring about a week ahead, so Ryenne may make an early appearance!

After the doc appointment, we had to go back down to the lab so they could draw my blood to check the glucose levels. Gosh I hope I pass cause that test was NASTY! Dr. Rodgers told me to eat something with protein to make me feel better so we went and had lunch at Maui Mall.

As I was finishing my hamburger steak, my tummy got rumbly and tumbly and I couldn't hold it - I ran outside and vomitted right in the middle of Maui Mall! Oh My God... so embarrasing! Luckily, Peter stayed with me and told me it was ok. The good thing is that all that orange crap came out and I felt so much better afterward!

I was really tired all through the night and I woke up to find a bigger belly! I think she grew some more overnight! haha

So anyhoo... I'm comin on to the third trimester and I'm so excited to meet my baby girl soon! =)

Dinner with my friends

A huge CONGRATULATIONS to Steven and Leizl on their engagement!! WooHoo!! I am so excited for you both. Glad we could get together for yummy food the other night too.

My Farm Boy

Here's Peter's first run out with the lawnmower! He was so excited to mow the lawn himself!

25 Week Belly

This is in no way a glamorous shot, but just wanted to post how big my belly is getting!! We'll have to take some better shots very soon. =)

Week 25

This is what a 25 week fetus looks like - amazing isn't it?? I can't wait to see Ryenne!!

$&@! ... I broke my toe

There should be a warning in the pregnancy books about what can happen when you can't see your feet anymore! Yesterday I was walking into the living room and banged my foot on the doggy gate and broke my toe. Today is a beautiful shade of black and blue, whith some purple mixed in there. You can call me "gimpy" if you'd like.

Treasures

My dad brought over a few 'lost' treasures to the house today. When I was little I had a rocking boat that he made for me - lots of great memories. Anyhow, it's a bit beaten and battered, but it just needs a cleaning and some fresh paint and it'll be perfect again!

He also found a box of books - some were mine, some Nick's, and some Koa's. Peter and I had fun reading a stack of them today. So funny to have flashbacks of my parents reading them to me!!

Ryenne is moving a lot now, and I can now feel her from the outside. It's like there's an alien in there!! But it's so cool too. =)

A Mover and Shaker!

Yesterday morning at 5:30am we woke up because the dogs wanted to go outside for a few minutes. Ryenne woke up too and was VERY active... biggest kicks I've felt so far. I put my hand on my tummy and I could feel her moving around!! It was such a trip. I grabbed Peter's hand and put it on my belly... "Did you feel that?" I said. He said he didn't, but at that very moment she let out a whopper of a kick and he yelled "But I felt that!". It was such a trip.

She's definitely a mover and a shaker. Today her movements feel so much bigger than just a few days ago. I think pretty soon we'll all be able to see my tummy moving around.

Mom and Dad bought us a bassinett to go in our room. It's a bassinett/cradle and it's so awesome. It even has wheels on the bottom to take around the house if we need to.

Napili Condo on the Market

WOW... what a week. My mom has been such a trooper and helped us prep the condo for going on the MLS. I helped too - as much as I could - and was thoroughly exhausted each day.

Pregnancy Brain... BIG TIME!

The other day we washed my camera bag because it was getting a bit funky. I took out everything inside and checked all of the pockets. Then, off into the washing machine it went. After a thorough washing and drying, Peter took it out of the dryer and starting putting stuff inside. He found my cell phone inside!!!

I hadn't even realized that he had just taken the phone out of my bag THAT JUST CAME OUT OF THE DRYER and exclaimed "There's my phone! Thanks for finding it!". He gave me a confused face and then the enormity of what had happened dawned on me - my phone wasn't 'found' but instead is broken cause I washed it!!!

So fast forward a couple days and here I am doing laundry. TONS of laundry. I'm very proud of myself because I've been cleaning the house in addition to folding and putting away each load. Anyhow, the dryer beeps that it's done and I go to transfer the stuff in the washer into the dryer, and what do I find??? THE REMOTE CONTROL. Damnit... I did it again. I washed the darn remote and now that's broken too. Maybe I should be banned from laundry duty??? LOL

I'm supposed to be the responsible one...

Changes...

Well it's official - we're now completely moved out of the Napili Condo and it's going on the market next week. I'm a little nervous because the market is softening a bit and I'm hoping to get what I want (NEED) so we can build our house the way we want to. I'm sending lots of positive vibes out into the universe for a good sale.

Had a check-up today and everything is going good. Ryenne is 'standing up' in there. Her head is up near my belly button and she's kicking me very low. Sometimes it's really hard and it kinda hurts! She kept swimming away from the Doppler machine. We could hear her heartbeat for a few minutes and then she'd move. Finally we got a good 10 seconds. Her heartrate is great. The tummy is popping out a bit more now. We'll have to do pictures again this week if we have time.

According to the What to Expect When You're Expecting Book, I'm now done with the 5th month and am starting the 6th month! In March, I'll start the 3rd trimester... amazing. It's zooming by. I can't wait to see her though... and smell her and hold her and talk to her. So exciting...

We can finally sit!

We're leaving all of our big furniture in Napili so that we can stage out the condo for when it goes on the market. It's looking really great so far - just needs to be cleaned and decorated.

The only downside is that we had no chairs in Haiku! So today we went and bought a loveseat, some shelves, and a table to eat on. We had our first dinner on a table tonight - it was awesome - lobster and saffron rice (thanks Nick for catching lobster!) and apple crisp for dessert (thanks mom!). YUMMY.

As I'm typing this, Peter and Chico are snuggled on the new loveseat. It's finally starting to feel a little more like home in Haiku. =)