1 Year Down....

Well, I guess I shouldn't quit my day job and become one of those super-mom bloggers. I haven't blogged in over a year - I know its been over a year because my last post I was still pregnant with this crazy little guy and I had no. earthly. idea. what I was in store for....

6 month-ish shameless selfie
I am sporting the no -makeup "I woke up like this" look 

Andys and my world has been rocked.  Nothing can prepare you for parenthood.  Nursing school & Medical School sleep deprivation ain't got nothing on the exhaustion that is being a parent of a newborn.

On the other hand - absolutely nothing can prepare you for the joy and love your heart feels from the moment of their first cry..... 

 Its like God knows what he is doing and makes the love you feel for that baby so strong that you will sacrifice sleep and drink lethal amounts of coffee (at risk to yourself) to keep that new little human alive ;). 

I wish I would have continued blogging over the last year.  Nates first birthday has come and gone {next blog post} and it got me feeling nostalgic.  As I read my old pregnant posts I regretted not better documenting his first year.

So even if its just for my mom and my friends Aubrey & Madison (who admitted to reading), or really just for me,  here goes try #2 of becoming an aspiring blogger.... Don't get your hopes up! 

Maternity Pictures

I mentioned my good friend Jordan in my last post - she works with me & is one of the most generous, kind hearted people I know.  She is hilarious so when we work together she keeps me laughing all day long.  She is just a great friend and I am blessed to know her! 

She is SO talented & took these INCREDIBLE pictures for me the day of the baby shower at her house for table center pieces - what was done for decorations for a party will now be something I cherish FOREVER! 

Jordan, you are so freaking talented and I can't thank you enough for taking these! I want to frame them all!!! I LOVE YOU :) 

Family of "Three" - Buddy was not on his best behavior for this photoshoot - he chewed through his leash and went straight to the water {hence being soaking wet}. We think he is acting out because he knows there is big change coming!

I'll say "Buddy where is your brother" and he will put his nose on my belly....he knows more than we think! 

Love of my Life

This one is for you Aunt G-Baby ....Thanks for the shoes!

I never knew my heart could love this much
<3

-Aly 

Off to pack baby hospital bag...mine is packed and ready to go! Andy and I went shopping and bought baby's coming home outfit today...cannot believe he is almost here! 

36 Weeks!

So, as I hinted before, I have been watching a lot of "16 and Pregnant" on MTV lately.  I can't say I have ever "liked" this show - but every time I see it on the channel guide it is of those car-wreck situations where you just can't stop watching.  I think I have grown to actually enjoy it because it helps me put a lot shit I worry about into perspective.  

For example - Being "25 and Pregnant" I worry about my baby daddy having the car seat installed correctly, Those girls on "16 and Pregnant" are worried if their baby daddy has a car...

Being "25 and Pregnant" I worry if my water will break at my place of employment, "16 and pregnant" - worried about water breaking at prom...

"25 and Pregnant" - I worry about deadlines - "How many days do I have to get baby on my insurance? When do I have to call and report maternity leave? Are all my bills paid and house in order before baby comes?". "16 and Pregnant" - worried about deadlines too - but more like "when is my English paper due?"

If a weekly dose of trash T.V. is what it takes to cure me of being completely neurotic, than so be it, bring on the next episode.

Next up ...BABY SHOWER! If you want to know how completely LOVED you are get pregnant and have a baby shower. People love babies and love celebrating whoever is having the baby.  Baby Navetta and I were spoiled at my baby shower in Tyler and then again at shower thrown by my friends in Lubbock.  I cannot THANK everyone enough for all the sweet {and useful} baby gear we received!

I also want to say a special "Thank You" to my grandmother who always hosts the most "pinterest-y" parties at her gorgeous house on the lake! I love you Nana and loved celebrating Baby Navetta with you! Also Thank You to my mom and and mother-in-law - I may be biased, but this baby is going to have the best grandmothers {and is going to be very spoiled}! 

I wish I had pictures from my Lubbock shower, but all I have is this cute invitation...My friend Jordan and her husband Mark were awesome hosts as we drank beer, watched football, and opened baby presents at their house {O'Douls for me of course}! 

And last, but certainly not least...

The mystery that is - PREGNANCY CANKLES

This happens to me on long car rides and after my 12 hour shifts at work.  It is effing weird to look down and have NO ankles and to have toes that resemble cocktail weenies. Strange confession -  I like pushing in on the swelling and making intentions then watching how long it takes the indentation to go away - Its the nurse in me - there just something about  +3 pitting edema! {I know only a small amount of readers are going to think that is funny..aka the nurses..everyone else now thinks I am a complete weirdo} 

So that's it! my long overdue update. I am thankful to be healthy and to have a healthy baby growing in there! 3 1/2 more weeks to go - which means I would be happy making any day now a BIRTH- day! 

Andy and I at the Sitka Wedding in San Antonio - This was our last baby-free road trip/mini vacation as a party of two! 

30 Week Update

I started this morning by eating a breakfast burrito that was exactly 1/2 the weight of my baby at our 30 week sonogram...

30 weeks

30 weeks 

I don't know if I should consider this an accomplishment or a low point in my life. 

{Full disclosure - Baby Navetta was measuring 2 weeks "big" or "ahead" at a whopping 3.14 lbs  3 weeks ago at that appointment.  For you who chose to do the math & probably believe it was indeed a bad decision for me to be indulging in a burrito that weighed over 1 lb - I just want you to know - I don't care what you think & the burrito was freaking good. I don't necessarily regret it, but would I do it again? Probably not....I ended up suffering from a bitching case of heartburn and I maxed out early on Tums.  I had my fun and now I've learned my lesson.} 

This has been an eventful couple of weeks and it doesn't look to be slowing down anytime soon...

"While the husband/baby daddy is away, mom & baby will play", or what that {just made up} phrase  should really say is - "While the husband/baby daddy is away, mom and baby will go jet setting across the country, enjoy the blue water and white sand beaches of Florida, party all night with best friends, shop and "nest" to their hearts content, and eat whatever the hell they want whenever the hell they want to eat it" 

And that is just what baby and I did while Andy was away in North Carolina! I missed my 

husband {A LOT} and I definitely prefer him home with us, but I can't say we didn't make the best of it while he was gone...

Bump on the Beach! 

Headed to the Beach in my first official Tankini - This is the point which I realized I am a real mom...wearing a mom swimsuit {hopefully only a matter of time, hard work, and a small miracle this ass will be back in a bikini in no time} ! 

My first friend in Kindergarden on her wedding day!

Madisons wedding was nothing short of PERFECT! Every detail was precious and she was a gorgeous bride! I was honored to be a part of her big day!  The wedding was in Rosemary Beach, Florida and I already plan on bringing Andy and Baby Navetta here for family vacations! 

Next post - My thoughts and reflection on the show "16 & pregnant" being "25 & pregnant", baby shower pictures, and what its like to have cankles.  Get excited...

Alyssa 

29 Weeks & Crazy

Warning: This is an emotional post.  I think I am transitioning out of this "Oh shit am I really having a baby?" to "Wow, I'm a mom and I cannot wait to hold my baby boy".  I imagine daily what he will look like, what it will be like bringing him home from the hospital, and what his personality will be like.  He was such a surreal thought up until recently, but now that I can almost pinpoint which of his little body parts is making my belly lopsided or poking me in the rib he is becoming a bigger reality {literally}! 

One of my sweetest and oldest friends Madison {who happens to be getting married the weekend after next AH!} sent me a precious baby gift a few weeks ago and included this book - 

It was a fine and great read, great advice, leisurely, relaxing, good book...until one of the last letters that got serious.  The author wrote "You only hold your one day old baby for one day".  I. Lost. It. I was laying there with Andy passed out next to me and Buddy sleeping at the foot of the bed.  My tummy was out in full force and I just looked around and wanted to freeze frame that moment.  The waterworks started and I suddenly didn't want to "wish" this time away.  I don't want that "one day" with my "one day old baby" to come any faster - not because I am scared of the HUGE change it will bring to my life, not because I'm scared of labor, not because I'm scared if I will be a good mom {even though I am a little frightened of all these things}, but because I do not want that "one day" to be over.

  

Come November, I will have anticipated that day for 9 months, and just like that we will move on to day 2, day 3, first day of kindergarden, etc....everyone says "it goes so fast", "enjoy every minute".  I think I realized the reasoning for that advice after reading that sentence, looking at my third trimester baby bump, and glancing over at my sleeping husband who I have already been married to for 2 years. Time really is fleeting and I don't want to take a single minute of my blessed life for granted. {See I am turning into a mom and having "mom feelings"}     

So thanks for the read Madi, it literally sent me into an emotional tailspin that only got worse...

I saw this commercial this morning and ended up salting my breakfast cereal with tears. Even though I have accidentally watched it 7 times trying to figure out how to get it posted on this damn blog, I still am getting a little teary eyed each time it plays.  I cannot wait for the day that he "becomes mine and I become his" and he "holds my hand back".  I don't think anyone can understand the love a mother has for their child until you experience it, and I haven't even held my baby yet! 

Being emotional and sentimental is nothing new for me - If you ask my girlfriends from nursing school  about my drunken professions of love for our friendships after long nights out they probably still have a few of those embarrassing videos of me crying and telling them how much I love them and they are "my best friends ever" & rambling on.  Right Laurie, April, Aub, Holly? Andy can probably attest to this as well.   I just think pregnancy has potentiated this personality trait, and by potentiated I mean I am now borderline psychotic! 

Thats all for now, I am going to try and hold it together for the rest of the day and do something productive like paint my nails - just my fingernails though, I can't reach my toenails anymore. 

-AlyNav 

Hello 3rd Trimester!

My extreme "nesting" {cleaning-out, organizing, throwing away, reorganizing, washing, scrubbing, organizing again} coupled with the fact Andy is in North Carolina for a month on an away rotation for school left me in an awkward situation with our first born baby - Buddy.  

"Mom, when is Dad coming home and why are you throwing all his stuff away?"

I tried explaining to him "Dad is indeed coming home - in a month, and its okay he doesn't need an office full of A&M memorabilia anyway{aka junk from his days at TAMU}.  Your brother is going to need a nursery". Even after my explanation, I still was getting this skeptical look as if Buddy thought his Dad and I were calling it quits. I can't blame the dog - I have loved having the whole bed to myself (lots of tossing and turning lately), All the pillows to myself (again, I cannot get comfortable at night with this big belly), and no more 4:15am wakeup calls for Andy to go into the OR, which thus becomes my wakeup call to lay in bed wishing I wasn't awake.  

Thankfully as Buddy and I were hashing this out Kelly & Michael were on T.V and Kelly Ripa brought up some study that showed people in long distance relationships connected more intimately than people who weren't.  Apparently they have to communicate more since they aren't in the same place or something.  I don't care why, or if the study was true, or even if it was scientific or not, I believe everything Kelly Ripa says - she has great hair & always has cute shoes - how can you not believe her. 

So see Buddy? Dad will be home before we know it & we will love each other probably more than we did before he left 

(and we will just keep the door to his old "office" closed until Mom goes to work).

After I threw his ball and he got completely covered in dirt (which is his favorite thing to do) he seemed to accept my explanation and decided to give me a break from his moping around! 

On to the pregnancy update....

So 28 weeks....Third Trimester! What the heck? I don't think anything in my life has gone this fast, but this slow at the same time.  Sometimes this is what my train of thought looks like - 

"Wow, I've been pregnant since February?.....I've been pregnant for this whole year pretty much? .....Is that normal for someone to be pregnant like almost a whole year?.....Oh my gosh I only have 11 more weeks to go...really its kind of almost Christmas....{panicking} ITS ALMOST CHRISTMAS?....I have so much to do....what on earth have I been doing since February because I feel like nothing is done?....I'm hungry...I have to pee...I need to organize something"

I went to my 28 week appointment and Mom & Baby are healthy :) Baby Navetta's precious heartbeat was 150 & strong.  I only gained 2 lbs these past four weeks and my blood pressure and lab work was perfect.  I am looking forward to my 30 week appointment & ultrasound - Aunt Emma gets to accompany me & I am dying for her to see her nephew in action.  I am also looking forward to baby showers and finishing getting house ready for baby. I have a lot to be thankful for! 

~Alyssa 

P.S. I should be the one giving Buddy a break - I admit I am missing Andy a lot too & I too am doing my fair share of moping around as well.  Maybe the real definition of true love is something like "True love is preferring to sleep uncomfortable and cramped next to the person you love than sleeping comfortably un-cramped in the middle of the bed alone".

25 Weeks

Wow, blogging is not for the faint of heart...or maybe blogging just isn't for someone with a full time job, short attention span, and someone who would rather be watching another episode of "Girls" than writing about herself! Whatever the case may be, although I may be terrible at this new found "hobby", I press on for the readers {aka my mom and maybe Aubrey?} ;) 

Here is my latest bump picture! This is 25 weeks and I am LOVING that belly!  Before I elaborate on pregnancy updates, I want to tell you about the events and emotions leading up to this picture so you can get an idea of how absolutely bat-shit crazy one becomes when pregnant.  

I was going through my closet trying on EVERYTHING to see what I can and cannot squeeze into my maternity wardrobe {literally} and I came across a couple of my Texas Tech game day shirts.  I got REALLY excited REALLY fast when I put this outfit on.  1. It fit! 2. It made me realize college football season is quickly approaching and I love football weekends almost as much as I love Christmas. 3. This year is Tech's year and I am in love with Kliff Kingsbury {I can't wait to see him on the sidelines with that good hair, headset, and sunglasses coaching the first football team I was a truly a fan of -  Texas Tech}! As I tried on my new maternity game day outfit  and took this spirited selfie I could practically hear "Raider"...."Power", I could smell the tailgating grills being fired up, and I could taste the beer on my lips....

And then the emotional roller coaster transpired. 

First realization - this outfit will not fit me in 3 weeks, much less the actual month and a half until the first game. Number 2, I can't make it two hours on my feet without them starting to swell & I know this is only going to get worse. I also cannot make it 35 minutes without having to go to the bathroom, So how could I ever make it through tailgating and an entire football game? Lastly, no beer for me this football season.  NO BEER DURING FOOTBALL SEASON? When is the last time I haven't had beer during football season? Definitely prior to my freshman year at Tech & that was 2006, this is 2013. 

Que the waterworks. I cried about my swollen feet, my squished bladder, and my sober season for about 2 minutes.  

As I sat dramatically on my bedroom floor acting like someone had died, baby was moving and kicking and I quickly was brought back to the reality of how thankful, blessed, and overwhelmed with joy I was about becoming a mom.  My priorities were put back into the appropriate perspective and I said a simple "I'm sorry God, that was a really bad reason to get that upset, I wouldn't trade where I am in this life for anything".  With that prayer and the thought of eating those tailgate bacon wrapped cream cheese jalapenos I was back to my excited, happy self

This all happened in less than 3 1/2 minutes - I am telling you I have almost ZERO control over my emotions these days.  So for those of you who don't believe in pregnant women being hormonal - Come visit me, I will make you a believer! 

How far along? 25 Weeks
Total weight gain: 18 lbs (whoops! how did that happen?)
Maternity clothes? Lots! Trying not to buy too much since I only have THREE months left, so I am wearing the same outfits over and over again.  My sweet mother-in-law took me shopping last month and got me some of my first additions to my maternity wardrobe! It was fun, she is the best! 
Sleep: Getting more and more difficult to get comfortable and the frequent bathroom trips make it hard too :(  
Best moment this week: My sister Emma came to Lubbock and got to feel and SEE Baby Navetta kick & move.  Andy feels on him and watches him almost every day {which I love}, but it was special to have my sister see and feel too! 
Miss Anything? Same stuff I have been missing - and believe it or not - running. I miss working up a sweat and feeling like I had a whole body workout. 
Food cravings: Nothing in particular 
Anything making you queasy or sick: Nope
Gender: BOY!!!!
Labor Signs: No. 
Symptoms: Acne continues, but is A LOT better.  Feet starting to swell when I am up for a long time.  
Belly Button in or out? In
Wedding rings on or off? Band on, engagement ring off - its getting a little too tight :( ! 
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy, but see story above! 
Looking forward to: Every morning when I wake up I look forward to feeling baby move and kick! I LOVE it.  I am also looking forward to decorating the baby nursery and collecting more baby stuff.  I swoon over baby clothes - I get teary eyed thinking my little guy will be in those clothes in 3 months! 
NOT Looking forward to: Andy leaving at end of August for A MONTH for an away rotation in North Carolina at UNC.  Thankfully Emma will be here with me so I won't be alone, but I am sure going to miss my husband.... We have done long distance for a lot longer than that in the past (grant it, we were dating and I wasn't pregnant), so we will be fine! Still NOT looking forward to it :(.  

23 weeks in Tyler with my handsome baby daddy!



Thats all for another month probably ;)
-Alyssa