Week 19

Nope, I didn't miss a few posts...it turns out I'm just further along than we originally thought!  Roibeard and I got an official due date at our last prenatal appointment - I'm due August 10th!!  That's only a few days from my birthday (August15th).

 

I'm definitely starting to look pregnant.  The baby bump is small, but it's there!  These photos were taken in Grant Park on a bitter cold March day.  I didn't add any filters or anything to make them look so blue.  I think it was so cold my camera was even shivering!!  Despite the snow and frigid temperatures once March hits I always try to start dressing for Spring.  Florals, florals, and more florals.  Haha.

 

 

 

I think I *might* (fingers crossed) be over the morning sickness period.  FINALLY!!!  Oh my gosh, I have just been such a miserable person the past four months.  I really haven't wanted to talk much to anyone or do much of anything. Also....I have been able to start eating cheese again in very small amounts.  Ever since around four weeks I have been unable to eat cheese without spending the night hugging the toilet.  For those of you who don't know, cheese is pretty much my favorite food; so this is a big deal.  Bananas, apples, and rice are among other things that have not agreed with me.

 

I still get a bit sick if I'm not eating enough, but for the most part I have been able to get through the day with minimal stomach upset.

 

One very unusual side effect that I have been dealing with is losing my eyelashes.  I've never heard of this happening, but I looked it up and sure enough it is definitely a result of the pregnancy.  It was quite alarming when I first noticed it!  I think the reason behind it is that the prenatal vitamins I was given by my doctor weren't vegan.  I wasn't getting the proper break down of vitamins as a non-meat-eater.  Ever since I made the switch to vegan pills my eyelashes have been doing much better.

 

Another unusual side effect has been phantom smells.  Particularly peanut butter.  I smell it everywhere.  All of my food smells like peanut butter and therefore tastes like peanut butter.  It's not a nice, faint peanut butter smell either.  It's really strong and over powering and drives me crazy.  My doctor assured me that phantom smells such as these are completely normal though.

 

In other news I just cut down on my hours at work.  I don't have the option to stop working at five months like some people are able to.  I've been working between 50-60 hours/week for the past year now.  That's a bit too much for me to keep up with right now.  So instead I'm working 20 hours at the café and 20 hours at the cinema.  It's still a full work week, but I now have two full days off and I am able to sit down while I'm at the cinema.  It's certainly going to be a huge struggle to make things work financially.  Roibeard and I have worked so hard to be able to afford a nice, "adult" apartment in a good neighborhood. We've been able to pay all monthly bills and loans and still have a little to save.  Now it feels like being thrown back into life as a student.  Finding any and all ways to make our money go as far as possible.  It's not just the baby that we have to prepare for either - our wedding is in October!  We definitely had to adjust our ideas of the dream wedding to make things work with having a newborn.  This means no honeymoon.  No amazingly beautiful castle wedding.  No ceremony over looking the ocean.  Oh well.  When we look back on this we will feel so blessed to have this amazing little one in our lives that those other things won't even matter.

 

 

 

 

It's so hard to know what life will bring once the baby arrives, but Roibeard and I have a few ideas of what we would like to do in terms of raising our little one.

1) We know that we want to breastfeed for sure.  It's healthier for the baby, good for me, and hey, it's free food!!  That being said I am really worried that this won't work as planned. Maybe the baby won't learn how to latch properly, I won't know how to hold it the right way, or my nipples will become too sore and start bleeding. Eek! 

2) We know that we want to use cloth diapers at least while we're at home.  It's so much better for the environment and will save money in the long run.  I don't know if I have it in me to go full hippie mom though. (I really wish I did.)  I feel like when we are on the run we'll probably have a stash of disposables on hand. 

3) We want to make our own baby food.  I wouldn't really consider Roibeard and I to be serious health food nuts (we both have a major sweet tooth), but we do try our best to eat a healthy diet.  We cook most of our own meals, rarely eat out, and try to avoid foods with artificial ingredients/additives.  So why wouldn't we want the same for our baby?  I've already been looking up some recipes and some of them sound so delicious, haha. 

4) Speaking of food, we would like to raise our baby a vegetarian.  I've been a vegetarian for most of my life and it's something that is very important to me.  It's a much healthier lifestyle and doesn't contribute to the unnecessary cruelty of animals.  Once the baby is old enough to understand what meat is and where it comes from I think it's okay if he or she wants to eat it outside of the house.  When we are home though we keep things veggie friendly. :)

** Just a side note - When I started this new blog I did it with the intention of creating a time capsule for our family down the road.  I don't expect to get many readers or followers.  However, if you do find yourself reading this first of all, welcome!! Second, know that none of these posts are sponsored.  Sometimes I get discouraged reading through all the baby blogs out there to see that the new parents have their cribs, strollers, and baby clothes all paid for by sponsors.  I want to read about real people struggling to make it on their own and how they get past the barriers.  That's what you'll find here.  Two first time parents scared out of their minds, but hopefully somehow pulling through, haha.  Enjoy.

Week 14

 

 

Nothing quite like a little hair in your face to start off your week!  I have officially made it into the 2nd trimester.  I have been eagerly looking forward to this stage as everyone has told me the morning sickness and fatigue will end.  So far they are all wrong.  I'm nauseous/vomiting all through out the day and my body pretty much crashes by 8PM. 

 

 

We recently had another ultrasound done, this time at the hospital.  Their machine was much fancier than the one at the clinic and we got to see the baby in so much detail that it was hard to tell just what we were looking at half of the time!  We are still waiting on them to process the results so that we have a due date.  I wanted to stay in the hospital and watch "baby tv" all day, but unfortunately our appointment only lasted about 30 min.

 

This week I felt the baby for the first time!!!  It's a bit early to feel anything like a kick.  It just feels like a little butterfly is doing somersaults in my tummy, haha!  It's a weird sensation, but definitely a good one.

 

That feeling along with the ultrasound has started to put things into perspective for me.  It's easier for me to understand that there is a little person in there.  Before this the whole idea of something inside of me growing and eating my food has really freaked me out.

 

 

 

 

 

It will be interesting to see how this pregnancy effects my personal style.  It as already changed quite a bit for two huge reasons...a) when I moved from San Francisco I had to get rid of almost all of my vintage clothes...and b) working in a café means constantly being covered in coffee and soup.  Both of which stain easily.

 

Since the pregnancy started it has been all about comfort for me.  I packed up all of my clothes that I know I won't be wearing for months.  I'm not quite big enough to fit into maternity pants, but my jeans are way too uncomfortable.  In the meantime I bought a pair of jeggings two sizes larger than I would normally wear (the ones I'm wearing in these photos).  They are a little too big in the legs, but they fit so well over all that I'm willing to over look it.

 

Other than the maternity jeans and probably some maternity tank tops I don't plan on buying any other clothes that are specifically "maternity".  Instead I plan to thrift some cute summer clothes in larger sizes.  Maternity clothes are just too expensive, not really that cute, and you can only wear them for a few months.  So why bother?  I'd rather save the money for spoiling the baby later on.  :)

Week 13

You may think that I'm referring to week thirteen of this dreaded winter.  Although I cannot wait for this winter to end, what I'm actually referring to is....a baby!!!  Yep!  I'm 100% pregnant!  Roibeard and I couldn't be happier.  We are still waiting on an official due date, but most likely it will be the end of August.

For the most part I'm not showing too much yet.  You can tell a bit when I'm wearing more form fitting clothes.  Right now it looks more like I gained too much holiday weight...and am still hoarding a secret stash of cookies and egg nog.  I'm definitely looking forward to the cute baby bump phase.  Which is not too far off considering I'm just about starting my second trimester.

My first trimester has been pretty rough.  I am so glad to have gone through this part in the winter though. The morning sickness has been really awful.  I'm sick all day.  I can barely even sit through a film these days.  I'm also always exhausted and fatigued.  Like I said though, I'd much rather go through this part now when it's freezing cold and I don't want to leave my apartment anyway than suffer during the summer and miss out on all the amazing weather and things to do.

We just started working a bit on the nursery.  We live in a one plus apartment, so space is a little limited.  We use the "plus" room as an office and that is where we keep our cat's litter boxes, so it's not really ideal for a bedroom.  So, we decided to give the baby our bedroom.  We currently have our bed in the living room.  We spent all of last year in a studio apartment, so it's not too unusual for us.  Unfortunately since we rent we probably won't be able to do any painting.  We'll find other ways of bringing a little color to the room though.  Adding the painting to the wall is just the beginning.  EEEEKKK!  I am just so excited!!

Michigan Time! Ann Arbor

 

Over Christmas Roibeard and I took an afternoon trip to Ann Arbor, Michigan.  We were heading back to Chicago from Detroit, so it was perfect because we had to drive through Ann Arbor anyway.  Every time I visit Michigan I try to show Roibeard around as much as possible.  Previous trips have included stops in Grand Rapids, Holland, Downtown Detroit, Hamtramck, Windsor, Ontario, and Point Pelee National Park in Ontario.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I have to admit that this was my first time exploring Ann Arbor as the person in charge.  In the past I would go with my friends or family and let them be the guide.  We parked right on the edge of downtown and then just walked around the city.  We stopped in the little vintage and antique shops and strolled through the U of M campus.  It was actually a really warm and sunny day.  I got a cute summer dress and a $1 book titled, "Songs of Friendship".  The book is an interesting collection of poems about the wandering/traveling lifestyle.  

 

 

 

Just for fun I thought I'd share a picture of Penelope.  My original little angel.  She now lives happily with my mom in Michigan.  When I moved to California it was too stressful for her and she started attacking my other cats.  I'm so lucky and grateful that my mom took her in so that she is still a part of the family.  I miss her like crazy!

 

IRELAND! Bundoran.

 

Yep, there's still more Ireland posts to come!  I'm writing this while sitting in front of my window sipping my tea.  The snow has been falling in Chicago for the past 18 or so hours.  My windows are frosted over and the children outside are building snowmen in their front yards.  Running away to a magical seaside land is just what this morning calls for and looking back at these photos provides just the escape that I need.

 

 

 

This part of our trip was probably the most relaxing.  We weren't running around trying to catch buses or find hidden pathways to castles.  It was just miles and miles of sea.  We spent the day hopping around fairy bridges and fairy rocks.  It was like right out of a fairy tale.  We climbed, we hopped, we waded, we explored, and we had an overall amazing experience.

 

 

The whole time we were here I kept calling the town, "BUN-DURR-AN".  Roibeard would get so angry, "NO! It's BUN-DOOR-UN!"  Haha, I totally failed, but I tried to get it right.  Our accommodations were probably the most hotel-like of any of the other places that we stayed.  I remember as we were leaving we visited the hotel shop and it was the first time I had ever seen eggs non-refrigerated.  They were just sitting there on the shelf.  Not going bad.  Just being eggs. Oh Ireland.  I miss you.  

 

 

 

That Fresh Feeling

 

Wow, these photos were taken back in October during one of our last truly warm days before winter hit.  The sky looks so.....blue! It's been nothing but grey for months now.

I haven't posted in awhile because my computer broke and it's a bit difficult to do everything on my iPad mini.  However, I have decided that I'm not going to use that as an excuse anymore.  

These photos actually fit nicely for this week as Chicago has been unseasonably warm the past few days.  It seriously has felt like spring is in the air.  I know it's not going to last, but it has been a welcome break from the below zero temps we've had lately.

Speaking of below zero temperatures...the pipes froze and broke in the apartment below us two weeks ago.  We had to go almost a whole week without water. It was awful and something I have never had to deal with before. No water = no toilet. Just say'n....

 

 

 

IRELAND! Donegal.

 

After leaving Derry we began to make our way to Bundoran, but not before stopping for the morning in Donegal.  Of course we stopped there to visit a castle!  For a very long time Donegal Castle laid in ruins, but was almost fully restored in the 1990s.

 

The castle dates back to the 15th century when it was occupied by the O'Donnell clan, who were a very powerful and influential family during the time.

 

 

You can't imagine my glee when we discovered we were actually permitted to go inside and explore!  I have always wanted to visit old castles and this was my first proper castle to visit.  Belfast castle was nice, but it's not a proper castle in my book.  You need to feel the adventure by just looking at it.  This one had stone walls and ivy and secret windows and winding staircases on the inside.  Proper fairytale material.

 

 

 

A lot of the photos that we took indoors are just too blurry to post, but I wanted to share this one of Roibeard going up the chimney!  We took this photo and then saw a sign that said something like: Children, please don't play in chimney.  Whoops!  Haha.

 

 

This photo I like because I feel like I look so mature...as in wise beyond my years.  Sometimes when I look at myself it's hard to see anything other than what I saw when I was a child.  If you look at photos of me from when I was 3 you'll see that I still have the same face.  I look this photo and see all of the things that I have experienced over the years.  Make sense?  Oh, also...my hair was a royal mess the whole time I was in Ireland.  I decided to not fight it and just embrace it.  (Also...I didn't realize my hair straightener and curler wouldn't work over there...)

 

 

While waiting for the bus to take us to Bundoran we headed to the coast where we discovered this ancient abbey.  It was quite beautiful right on the ocean.  Some of the graves were more recent, but most of them were so old you couldn't even read the stones anymore.  All in all Donegal was a really nice day trip to make.