In the home stretch...

It sure has been awhile.... I think my last blog was April? Maybe. I'm not real sure. I have been so busy... and side tracked doing so many things to get ready for the baby that I haven't taken the time to update. But if you follow me on Instagram you'll know that I update extremely often ;) 

First things first... 

I am 36 weeks TOMORROW!! 

Which means - NINE MONTHS.

I have made it. 

This pregnancy has seriously flown by and it's a bit bittersweet because I am pretty sure this will be our last one. This pregnancy has been the hardest on me and I am really looking forward to having my baby girl here. And I don't say that as I'm ungrateful, because I thank God every single day for the blessing that is my daughter growing inside of me for the past 36 weeks. I know many women suffer from infertility, repeat pregnancy loss, etc. & I really could not imagine going through that. While I suffered a miscarriage before our rainbow baby, I could never handle a recurring miscarriage situation. I pray for those women that they can somehow find peace and that one day their wish to be a mommy comes true <3 But I am in no way ungrateful. 

I think that every mama who is at the end of her pregnancy knows what I'm feeling. 

That whole:

"Get this baby out of me!" 

type of deal. 

I am at that point

where the heat here in Pennsylvania is overwhelming, 

the weight gain, the huge belly, the insomnia, leg cramps, excessive heartburn, never being able to get comfortable, round ligament pain...ALL THAT - I'm just READY. 

How I feel these days. 

I am just BEYOND ready. 

I should update everyone on my progress though.

I spent a night in the hospital recently because I am 2.5 cm dilated and 80% effaced already.

And this was shortly after my birthday. I have the absolute MOST wonderful OB ever. And in a weeks time I went from 50% effaced and a small 1 cm dilated to 2.5 cm and 80% - my doctor was taking NO chances due to my preterm labor history. He admitted me and gave me the steroid shots for the baby's lung maturity as well as gave me meds to stop my contractions. 

Since then I've been doing okay, still contracting but not as close together, and it hasn't been much cause for concern. Thankfully. 

We have been doing a lot of planning and prepping in getting ready for her arrival, and yesterday we took Caleb to the Strasburg Railroad for his last big outing before he becomes a Big Brother and we become a Liczbinski family of four. <3 Here's some pictures from that:

Caleb got to ride the Thomas the Tank Engine and the Percy train, which is something he was looking forward to for WEEKS before and he had an absolutely wonderful time. It of course happened to be the HOTTEST day of the year yesterday - which was tough for me being nine months pregnant - but it was all for him. This was something we had planned for him because I won't be traveling much in the coming weeks except to walk all over to go into labor ;) 

It was a really fun day though and we all had a great time! We are going again in September when it'll be a little cooler out. And we will be a Liczbinski family of four by then! =) <3 How exciting.

We also finished up the baby's nursery - which proved to be quite a process and took way longer than we had expected. 

But here is the finished product:

It is literally my Dream Nursery. 

And I couldn't imagine it coming out any more amazing than it has.

It's everything I dreamed of for our daughter plus some!! 

There are times I literally go in there and just STARE because I am amazed by how beautiful it is and how incredibly it came out... <3 Honestly I couldn't even tell you what it looked like before had I not taken pictures of the progress as we went.

Top Right: before we started painting... Right: as we started the painting process which took SO long and felt like it would never end... Bottom left: the cherry blossom decal process that my husband was so gracious enough to do the tree and branches (we both did the blossoms)... Bottom Right: is the finished decal - took a couple days because we took breaks.

This is how the decal looks before application. Everything is literally individually applied. Nothing is one big piece... the tree itself and its branches have four separate sections labeled A, B, C, D and it has to be done in order. The branches are all done INDIVIDUALLY. The bigger pieces are the main base of the tree. The blossoms (there has to be over 200) and the birds all have to be cut out and applied individually as well. But the finished product is nothing short of amazing.

This is the process of the tree and branch application itself.

My husband, who is the least patient person I know when it comes to projects like this did the entire tree aspect on his own without losing his patience ONCE. Which is quite a big feat for him, lmao.

He made sure everything was perfect and the outcome is obviously incredible.

For those curious about where we got what. I'll tell you.

Cherry Blossom Decal: Simple Shapes on Amazon. It's pricey but worth the price you pay. It was $139 and I was hesitant at first due to cost but after looking around, I came back to this one. Over and over again. Since its been applied and everything, I can see why it cost as much as it is. It's PERFECT. And beautiful. I left a review on their Amazon page.

Changing table, Dresser, & pink rug: all from IKEA. And inexpensive to boot...I mean it wasn't all $20 but it was less than what you'd pay at a place like Target and the quality is really great. The pink rug I would recommend getting a rug pad for underneath of it because it's thin and standing on it barefoot is incredibly uncomfortable. The changing table is part of the STUVA system at Ikea and was the biggest pain in the butt to put together...the drawer front comes in different colors but we got the pink to kind of offset it a little bit. This entire system converts into a desk later on so it's really versatile. Downfall besides assembly? Comes in about 6 boxes. No exaggeration. The other dresser cost us $100 but has a lot of drawer space and easily assembled.

Gray Rug, Changing pad cover, Breathable bumpers, crib skirt and sheet: All from Target - my favorite store. Also all inexpensive. The rug is EXTREMELY comfortable and it makes me want to get another one for the far side of the room that's not pictured. But it's incredibly soft and comfortable and perfect for the late night changes and standing in front of the changing table. Crib skirt and sheet are both online only.

Crib: is from Babies R Us. We loved the white crib from the beginning and we lucked out in having a friend of ours sell us hers for more than half of what she paid when she got it. It's in excellent condition and a 3 in 1 - which is IDEAL. However, it's discontinued through BRU, but they have similar looking ones online and in store.

If there are any other questions about anything in the nursery - please email me at jrob0601@gmail.com and I would be more than happy to answer! :) 

<3 

This nursery is just better than what I even imagined. You get a picture in your head and you don't think it'll look that amazing but this surpassed everything I ever wanted and I'm so excited for my baby girl to be here so she can utilize it <3 

With that being said... I took a walk down my bump board memory lane since I'm starting month 9 tomorrow and I wanted to take a look back. I would be lying if I said I didn't get emotional looking back because it feels like just yesterday that we announced we were expecting on Christmas morning.

And now I am 36 weeks tomorrow and literally anything could happen from tomorrow until my due date which was a month away as of yesterday...<3 

This is from our 4D ultrasound we had at 32 weeks:

She looks so much like her brother... and he is so excited to meet her.

He said "mama, I am going to protect her and love her."

I cannot wait to see him with her. She's so precious <3 And he is too<3 

We are all beyond excited for her arrival.

BumpBoard Memory Lane: 

It's crazy how much everything has changed. And how much bigger I've gotten...

Honestly I never carried this big with Caleb and it's been tough on my body because I'm typically tiny. I am definitely looking forward to getting my body back after she's born and I have some plans on my "body after baby" routine. But I am in no real rush... 9 months on 9 months off - hopefully less though. God willing. I also have a Belly Bandit that I am planning on using to help get back to my pre-pregnancy size. Which has had some outstanding reviews. 

It's so hard to believe that my pregnancy is almost done... and that it's flown by like this.

I feel beyond blessed and happy and excited. And I am so happy that I chose to document my pregnancy with bump boards and blogs (until I didn't, but everything is on my Instagram). It was such a good idea to do this, because it helps me look back. Once she's here I plan on doing monthly ones with her as well - as much as I can. And I'll do a final board with me holding her as well.

My 36 week board:

NINE MONTHS! =) 

I'm suffering from insomnia, can't get comfortable, leg cramps, excessive heartburn, swollen ankles, contractions are happening more often.

BABY GIRL IS THE SIZE OF A WATERMELON!

and now she's just packing on the pounds before she arrives.

If she arrived now she would be able to survive and those steroid shots for her lungs did wonders for their maturity, so she would be fine if born now! =) 

Here's the plan: 36 week visit to my OB and he's going to check me. And then we can see if any progress has been made... I'll be incredibly surprised if there hasn't been any. She's dropped a lot in my belly and I feel contractions more often and even some pressure. If nothing tomorrow that would cause me to go over to L&D.. 

37 Weeks. I am getting my membranes stripped at my visit.

My OB is confident this will do the trick and I'll be in labor.

So prayers and fingers crossed. <3 

One can only hope it works. If I don't go before then.

I have a feeling I'll be going before 37 weeks but you never know! =) 

^ you can see how much he's dropped in a days time and from different angles.

She has been head down since 28 weeks and she is incredibly low.

...my bladder informs me every five minutes.

Birth plan:

Still the same as before. I plan on going naturally and I'm actually really nervous and anxious since I've never done it before. But I've gone into my pregnancy with this mindset and I'm confident I can do it. Not  to say I am not scared to death of how bad it'll hurt. Caleb's labor was a quick 3 hours and 2 pushes and I always wonder had I not gotten the epidural if I would have had him faster. I plan on doing delayed cord clamping and skin to skin. I also would like to be able to pull her out by myself. 

We shall see. Usually when there's a plan it doesn't go that way. 

In terms of hospital visitors? We aren't sure. I told Ray I will have the final say in what happens. 

Not even being bitch. But I am the one pushing the baby out. And it depends how I feel.

First visitor will be Caleb of course! So he can meet his baby sister! <3 

It has been that way from the gate too. 

It's going to be a big transition for him and I don't want him bombarded either.

Vistors will be determined afterwards.

Home visitors won't be for 2-3 weeks. 

That can annoy whoever, but it'll be respected.

People seem to think new moms enjoy being bombarded after months of waiting and hours of labor.

Definitely not the case.

Here's to my final month of pregnancy and a healthy baby girl <3 And a safe, healthy, quick delivery for mama! <3 Words can't describe how blessed and happy we all are to almost have our baby girl here with us <3 

So until then...

-XOXO- 

Jenna

Hospital Tour & Week 25

I've been so lazy with posting lately & I apologize for that. I tell myself that I'm going to post & then I just get side tracked... So now I'm laying in bed posting from my good old iPhone. 

First things first, I'm at week 25 this week. & little lady is the size of a cauliflower. 

She's moving a decent amount and causing me quite a lot of discomfort. Leg cramps, heartburn, reflux, round ligament pain all seem to be daily staples in my life. It is all worth it though. 

We are getting paint for the nursery next week and picking up her crib as well :) and then the fun begins. My baby shower is also coming up in about a month and I'm really excited :) 

Other news: 

Did something I've never once done before. And maybe it has something to do with the bad memories I've got at PMMC or maybe it's just the plan I have for this rodeo. Either way I did a hospital tour of L&D and I'm SO GLAD that I did. 

If you're pregnant, I recommend scheduling a tour. You learn so much and get familiar with the staff and hospital . Today at my tour I was told about the "family waiting room..." It's a place where friends and family can sit and wait while I'm in labor. Now, given the bombardment of last time I gave birth, I am pretty against people visiting. But it was more so great news for Caleb. The hospital also endorses sibling involvement which is something really major and important to me. 

Since I've been stressing about what to do if I go into labor and jamie isn't there in time, what do I do? Well now we have a solution. We can bring him with us and he can wait right there with us. And then come in and meet the baby right away. <3 which means a lot to me. It's tough because we don't have anyone real close by that we can rely on... My mother in law is out of the question, because she's never around or has an excuse. So finding this out was a great thing. 

I have a lot of different things I want to do with this birth compared to the others.

1. No pain meds. I want to go completely natural. I know it sounds crazy, but it's something that I really want to try. Women did it this way for hundreds of years and I want to experience it. Besides Rays throat will be right there for me to strangle him so. Lol. He can deal. 

2. Delayed cord clamping. I feel like this is a fairly new premise. But it's something I feel strongly about doing. By waiting a few minutes for the cord to change color the baby gets vital blood etc. 

3. Having a mirror. This was something I literally decided on YESTERDAY. Something that freaks me out a little bit but I think that it's beautiful and I want to see her be born. 

4. Pulling her out. This is something new to me as well. I'm going to ask if I'm allowed to pull her out when her head is right there. 

5. Pictures!!!! I want a lot taken in the delivery room. I just want everything documented and saved and remembered. Considering it will probably be done with an iPhone I'm not too worried about quality, because these are for our memories. No one else. Plus knowing Caleb can be there now right down the hall, I'm excited to catch those first moments with those 2 together. 

All in all I'm excited. Taking a hospital tour was something I'm really glad that I did. Something that I wish I had done in the past, but I'm glad I did it now. Here's hoping that July gets here soon! :) 

24 Weeks Down, 16 more to go!

Highlights and Lowlights of Week 24 of My Pregnancy:

Highlights: 

• My little lady has been moving much more frequently, reassuring me she's doing okay in there :) 
• WE HAVE HIT THE AGE OF VIABILITY! (although everyone has something different to say)
• No preterm labor scares or contractions (besides Braxton Hicks) & if you know me, you know I've dealt with preterm labor every single time
• STRONG HEARTBEAT! <3 At my appointment last week, she was squirming around but her heart rate ranged from 120-154 :)  
• My pregnancy support belt from Motherhood Maternity has helped with the lower abdominal pain & I have been able to work out again! :)  
• I'm measuring right on schedule! 
• I am feeling more and more comfortable with my pregnancy body <3 =) 
• Getting excited (and kind of anxious) for labor, but more excited right now. Looking forward to holding my baby girl in my arms and kissing her little face.
• Set on my birth location and birth plan. We are doing delayed cord clamping (you want your baby to get the most from you before the cord is cut, so we are waiting until the tube loses color to cut it) and we are doing immediate skin to skin contact. 
• Linea Nigra... it might seem odd but I never really had that line with Caleb or Gianna or Nick. This is really the first time I have it. And it's not really that bad. It's still faint, but it's kind of exciting for me. 
• Loving  the Motts Apple White Grape Juice & tomato red onion salad with EVOO (light) 
• Almost to the THIRD trimester already =) 28 Weeks and we are THERE. 

Lowlights:

• HEARTBURN/ACID REFLUX/INDIGESTION - it gets pretty terrible at times... to the point it wakes me up or I vomit because of it. I am usually taking Zantac in the morning and before bed. 
• Abdominal pain/tailbone pain - my support belt helps but it's still there. 
• Fear of too much weight gain (I'm working out and staying healthy and I know the weight will come off. But seeing numbers go up on the scale after staying the same for so long freaks me out). 
• Still not leaking any colostrum. Breastfeeding is REALLY important to me. By this time with Caleb I was leaking already, and I haven't done that yet. Not really stressed about it but will be meeting with a lactation consultant to see if theres anything we can do.
• Shortness of breath
• Swollen feet/ankles. Usually from standing too long. Nothing I am too concerned with yet.
• Difficulty shaving my legs, LMAO. & of course right in the beginning of warmer weather. I'm going to need to ask Ray for help pretty soon ;)  
• Glucose test is coming up on the 16th of this month -___- and with Caleb's I almost threw up because it tasted so horrible.
• Back pain... begging my hubs to give me massages constantly LOL. And I've gotta feeling I'm going to have back labor 
• Uncomfortable/Restless when I'm sleeping. Once I am finally comfortable I need to find a new position. And moving around is extremely uncomfortable.
• Itchy belly 

Weight Gain: +16 pounds 

Doctors say I'm on track. I feel like I'm gaining faster this time. But I'm still healthy. And doing well. Working out like I have been makes me feel better about the weight I'm gaining.

Baby Girls Movements: Moving a lot more frequently & we can see it now on the outside of my belly <3 which I absolutely LOVE. 

Food Aversions/Cravings: I haven't been craving too much... but I am always hungry it feels like. When I made London Broil the other night for dinner I got really bad heartburn from it, and when I made turkey chili I felt sick afterwards - so I don't think the baby likes either of those things. LOL. Which I hope goes away when she's born because they're my favorite things. 

BIG NEWS: 

• I have a venue for my baby shower!!!! If you know me, then you'll know what a relief this is for me... I didn't want to have to do it at my apartment. While it's certainly big enough... I just didn't feel like doing it here. The parking situation here is a pain in the ass, and the parking authority has been out with a vengeance as of lately.. 3 hour parking and they'll chalk your tires. And then ticket you for $30. And I would HATE to have people come here and then get tickets because the parking authority is like a bunch of nazi's. Actually having it in the township building my husband is a police officer at! =) So I'm really relieved about that.  
• Baby Shower Invitations will be getting mailed out TOMORROW!!!!! <3 So if you've sent me your address? Be on the lookout for your invite. =) Grateful for my best friend Emily who is helping me with everything baby shower related. I probably wouldn't be doing a shower without her.
• COMPLETELY NEW NURSERY DESIGN. When we looked at our baby girls room we figured that the original nursery idea we had chosen wasn't going to look right. It's a smaller space and I think the stripes would look odd. We have a brand new idea picked out and we are super stoked to start it... <3 We are going to pick up paint and supplies next week and then HOPEFULLY getting started the following Monday (when Ray is off of work).  Once the nursery is painted and complete then we can start working on getting the furniture together and everything else.
• I'm really wanting to do maternity pictures... something with my shadow and the silhouette of my belly. Hoping I can get my sister Julia to do it for me.
• Picking up some baby stuff next week... haven't decided on what though yet. I keep switching around with car seats, strollers and things like that. LOL. I'm indecisive with these things. 

 

All in all I have been acting an extremely good pregnancy. The heartburn has been terrible but manageable. The lower belly pain was excruciating, and I'm glad that the support belt has brought me so much relief. I am feeling good though. Hungry a lot but good ;) 

Other Big News in the Liczbinski Family: Caleb has his 1st t-ball game next Wednesday night and I am beyond excited to see him play. Oddly enough his team name is the same as his daddy's team when he was little - why wouldn't they be exactly the same? Haha. GO MARLINS!! Easter is this weekend as well, so we are dying eggs and doing an egg hunt. Not a big Easter person so we aren't going anywhere or doing a big dinner or anything like that.

I hope everyone has a great rest of your week, weekend & a great Easter holiday! <3 =) 

Remember to follow me on Instagram: @jennaliczbinski 

I post really frequently with bump shots, pregnancy updates and family and fitness updates! =) 

XOXO, Jenna