I’ve officially made it to my third trimester!!!

Update time….

How Far Along: 28 weeks

I thought I had a stomach at 18 weeks. Lol…

Cravings: I sadly gave into a craving or two this past week.  It’s not completely my fault though, because someone on the message boards I read, posted something about donuts and that was it.  After I saw that, I had to have one, or two, or maybe three (donut holes, and just one regular donut).  Jeff’s office also threw us a baby shower and they special ordered cupcakes, so I may have had a few of those as well.  I am currently on a sugar detox.  Especially seeing I never got back my glucose results from my test last week.  I figure that no news is good news!

Exercise/Fitness:  It’s honestly been one of those not so good weeks; which I hate.  What I mean by this is that I’ve only made it to the gym once this week, other than to train; but I’ve tried my hardest to keep at it and have put myself through some great circuit training workouts at home.  However, the past two/three days I haven’t been feeling the best.  I’m typically one who lives by the saying “no excuses”, but when I put on my heart rate monitor Tuesday, my RHR was already at 110, which is high.  Then, when I tried to do something simple, it jumped up to 157.  I think it goes without saying, that for health reasons, I decided to stop working out.  I thought that this was just an isolated occurance, but this morning, while I was training a friend, and just standing there, my RHR skyrocketed to 142 and when I sat down it was still around 110.  In addition to my sporadic high heart rate, I think I may be suffering a little bit from restless leg syndrome.  The reason I say this is because my legs have been getting a slight tingly sensation, which has made working out a challenge.  Hopefully these things will pass soon.  I hate being limited, but I only have a little while left!

To be safe though, I called my OBGYN, who informed me what even for pregnancy, this is not normal.  I now have an appointment to go see a regular doctor due to the fact that there could be some underlying heart issues.  What a great start to my Thursday.

What’s Next:  Besides my abrupt new doctors appointment Jeff and I are signed up to go take a tour of the labor and delivery unit at the hospital this Saturday morning.  I’m hoping that this will ease some of the nervousness I feel toward giving birth.

I’m also in the process of searching for and buying a new car.  I think I finally found one that will be good for about 2-3 years and then Jeff promises me that I can get an amazing new mustang!  I really want the 2015 limited edition 50th anniversary mustang with the cashmere interior package.  For now, I will drive a ford focus titanium.  It still has a sporty looking interior, which I love, it just doesn’t have the power of my mustang.

That’s all I have for now, I should be off anyway, so I can make my appointment.  I hope everyone has a great week and I look forward to seeing some of you at the gym.  “Push yourself, because no one else is going to do it for you.”

Sorry this is a few days late, but my weekend became a little more hectic then I planned.  As the saying goes though, ‘better late than never.’  So, as I promised in my last post, here are the details of my meal prep for the week.

The main reason that I decided to start prepping meals is to help keep me on track throughout the rest of this pregnancy and beyond.  Plus, I want to make sure that I’m eating as healthy as I can.  In all honesty though, no one is perfect and I know I may stray from it a little, especially every now and again when a craving strikes (like this weekend, when I just had to have a donut or two).

I’m always seeing things online though, about people who prep their meals, and I find myself thinking that it looks like such a great idea!  And let me tell you, it is!  It has made dinners so easy on me for the past few days.  And not only dinners, but also snacks!  However, after having some time to eat the food now; I realize that when I prep my meals later this week, there are some things I’ll do differently.

1.  I filled up my little snack bowls with about a cup of fuits and veggies and after snacking on them, I discovered that it was wayyyyy too much!  I think I’ll switch my measurements to 1/2 cup serving size.

2.  I also need to season my chicken and turkey when I cook it, instead of adding seasoning to it before I reheat it.

3.  I will also skip the sweet potatoes.  I typically love sweet potato casserole, especially during the holidays (when it’s loaded with all the things that are unhealthy), but when they are being served plain and reheated, they’re just not good.  I personally will stick to other vegetables.

So, here’s what I prepped this past week:

• Chicken
• Ground Turkey (99%fat free)
• spahetti squash (my favorite!)
• Roasted aspargus
• sweet potatoes
• steamed broccoli
• chopped zucchini (raw)
• chopped broccoli (raw)
• Cubed watermelon
• sliced strawberries
• mandarin oranges
• hard boiled eggs
• chopped kale

Yay!  The end of second trimester is finally here.  I’m really getting anxious to see what Griffin looks like, especially seeing two of my friends just had babies this week and I got to see their pictures.

Update Time….

How Far Along: 27 weeks

Clothing:  I’ve definitely been wearing maternity clothes now, at least when I’m not in my gym attire.  I also ended up buying a few more summer dresses, mostly because the maxi dresses I already own are size XS, and they just don’t look good when I put them on.  I really want to purchase at least one more article of clothing, a pair of workout pants.  Mostly because I’ve been wearing my favorite pair of Lululemon pants, which still fit, but I’m afraid I might be starting to stretch them out.

Missing:  Strawberry daiquiri’s.  I’m usually not a drinker, at all, but Jeff’s cousins were in town this past weekend and it was so nice outside that we grilled out and made drinks.  It’s kind of like that saying goes….’You always want what you can’t have.’  Knowing that I couldn’t even have a sip, just made me want it even more.  Either way, we all had a great time and even played a few lawn games including a giant outdoor Jenga.

Exercise/health:  I’m so excited that I was finally able to make it back to the gym this week.  I’ve gone everyday, except for Monday, but I worked out at home instead, so it’s ok.  I’ve also been working hard to challenge myself this week, and Jeff too.  For example, yesterday was arm day, and today, just even trying to jump rope, I could feel the soreness.  I’m not complaining though, because I love whenever I’m sore!  It helps me see what a great workout I completed.  In addition to being physically active at the gym, I’ve also been trying to use my treadmill.  I’ve had to take down the incline even more though (20 degrees now) and only end up walking for about 20 minutes, mostly because I tire out quickly.

Doctor’s:  I also had another doctor appointment this week, which was in order for them to test my glucose levels.  Every pregnant women needs to undergo this test just to make sure that they don’t have gestational diabetes.  (Even the healthiest person can be diagnosed with this during pregnancy). Usually this test is only an hour, but seeing that so many women fail the hour (not really sure why) my doctors office goes straight to the three hour test.  This meant that I had to go in on Tuesday morning and get blood drawn.  Then I had to drink a small beverage, containing 75 grams of sugar, wait an hour, had my blood drawn again, waited another hour, and then had my blood drawn for the last time.  It wouldn’t have been that bad, but I have tricky veins, so instead of being stuck with a needle 3 times, I was pricked 5, with some painful needle turns thrown in there.  And not only did I have blood drawn, but I also had a doctors appointment between my lab work where I ended up getting my RH shot.  It was given to me right between the back part of my butt and hip.  I didn’t catch a break on Tuesday morning, but I’m glad that it’s over with, at least for now; I’ll need to get one more of those shots at birth.  The needle was quite large too and if you don’t believe me, google it.  Lol….At least it wasn’t too painful.

Food:  Now that all my vacations are over, and family has left, I feel like I can finally get back into my normal eating routine.  I kind of fell off the bandwagon for the past 2.5-3 weeks, but I’m ready to dive in and eat healthy again.  Mostly because I like how eating well makes me feel, but I also want to make sure that I don’t end up gaining a lot of weight this last trimester.  Therefore, I decided to start prepping some meals.  Yesterday afternoon was quite busy and I cooked a whole bunch of things and got it all set up/organized.  I plan to write another post here, in just a bit, or tomorrow, going through what I prepped for the week.  My goal is to continue this for the rest of my pregnancy.

What’s Next:  I really have to start knocking out my list of things to get done because I’m running out of time.  I have 13 weeks left, that’s 91 days, and that’s if Griffin doesn’t come early, which I’m kind of hoping he will.  (At least a week or two early would be good with me)  I just really, really, really, don’t want to go past my due date.  I also have another shower coming up tomorrow.  The people at Jeff’s office are so sweet and want hold a luncheon for us.  I also want to work on Griffin’s closet this weekend.  We plan to put in some built in shelves.  In addition to this we also need to go test drive some vehicles.  I sadly need to trade in my mustang for a car that will be able to hold an infant carrier/car seat.  My two top choices are a Ford Escape or a Nissan Murano.

I’m not really a fan of these pictures anymore, but I do love knowing that Griffin is growing, so the stomach is worth it!

I’m officially back from my vacation, and have no more travel plans for before baby Griffin arrives.  I had a wonderful trip up to Michigan though and was fortunate enough to get to visit with many close friends and family members.  Even my mom flew in from Las Vegas, so she could be there with me.

Here’s a little about my trip:  I arrived in Michigan on Thursday, March 26th and stayed with my best friend/sister from another mother Christina.  We have known each other for almost 30 years now and both her mom and her were very sweet and hosted a lovely baby shower for me on that Saturday.  It was really nice because they invited everyone that we grew up with.

It was so nice to catch up with everyone and see what’s going on in their lives.  I ended up staying at Christina’s house until that Monday, when I packed up my belongings and drove to stay at my grandmas (who literally lives 5 minutes down the road).  My mom was also staying there, so it was just the girls, which was fun!

On Thursday, the start of my week 25, Jeff flew into Grand Rapids and my mom, Rachel (a friend), and I picked him up.  We then drove over to his parents house, near Lansing, where we dropped off Rachel’s car and then continued on to Detriot to catch a Red Wings hockey game!

After that, on Saturday, April 4th, Jeff’s Aunt Phyllis and his mom were very thoughtful and hosted another baby shower for me.  This one was mostly Jeff’s family (except for my mom, grandma, and Christina) and was also very nice.  I feel so incredibly blessed to have such wonderful people in my life who want to help us celebrate Griffin!

On Sunday, April 5th, we loaded up Jeff’s car and drove back to North Carolina.  Since then, I’ve been in the process of unpacking and cleaning.  It really seems like a never ending cycle.  Part of me wanted to procrastinate but I had to get it done because Jeff’s cousins, Katie and Lauren, arrived at our house last night.  It’s Lauren’s spring break, and they are staying with us until Sunday.  Should be good times!

Well, that’s enough about Michigan, so let me give you a quick pregnancy update:

How Far Along: 26 weeks today!!!

Cravings:  I feel pretty lucky that I haven’t had any serious/weird pregnancy cravings.  Not that he’s mentioned it, but I’m sure that Jeff likes it too mostly because that means I haven’t been one of those ladies you hear about that sends her husband out at all hours to get her food.  Other than wanting more sweets at times, (which I know I should avoid) my eating habits have pretty much stayed the same.

Exercise/Fitness:  Sadly I took a little step back this past week.  It’s already difficult to workout when you are traveling, but add in a colder climate, and not packing the right clothes to go run outdoors in, makes it really difficult.  I did however get in a few indoor workouts and Rachel even took me to the gym one day while I was staying at my grandma’s house.  Now that I’m home though, I’ve been working out/running again and am even doing a squat challenge every day.  I just haven’t been in to the actual gym for my workouts.  I have gone to train though.  Hopefully I’ll be back tomorrow.

What’s next?:  I have my glucose tolerance test at the doctors office next week, and I’m really not looking forward to that.  I’m not allowed to eat after midnight and when I go in for the appointment I have to drink this flat soda type beverage that contains 50 grams of sugar.  Yuck!  After I drink it I have to wait an hour before they will run a blood test to see what my sugar levels are at.  They do that a total of 3 times, which means that it’s a 3 hour test.  Yes, you heard correct, I have to sit at the doctors office for 3 hours.

Also on my to do list next week is to start looking at new cars.  I was so sad when I got home from Michigan and realized that an infant carrier would not fit in my car; which means that I have to trade in my mustang.  It definitely has been so good to me thorughout the years, but Jeff promises that if we find a decent car for now, that will get me by, then in a few years I can get a brand new mustang again, with all the upgrades!  Sounds good to me!

Sorry that this weeks update is kind of short, but I have company in town, so I’d better get going!  I hope that everyone has an excellent week and hopefully I’ll see some of you at the gym.

Heres an update photo from last week:

Yay, this past week officially marked the beginning of Spring, and that means Summer will not be far behind!!!  And I love Summer!  However, I must admit that I’ve been enjoying watching the flowers bloom on the trees this week, and know that when I get back from Michigan, I’ll see a lot of green.

So, before I head off on my 12 hour drive to Michigan; here’s a quick update:

How Far Along: 24 weeks exactly!

Missing Anything:  With a 12 hour car ride ahead of me today, I’m really missing my triple shot, Venti, Starbucks, blonde roast coffee.  A decaf skinny vanilla latte is just not going to cover it.  Oh well.

I know this may sound funny too, but I really miss being able to carry all my grocerys inside at once.  Usually I just load up my arms and manage, but I’ve really been struggling with that lately, mostly because things are becoming awkward to carry.  I must look a little pregnant too, because the other day at Kohls, a sales guy saw me trying to carry a few items to the front of the store and came rushing over to carry them all for me.  It was really sweet and he didn’t take “no” for an answer.  He even stood with me in line is that I didn’t have to hold everything.  I’m not really use to that.

Cravings:  I must admit……I caved a little this week.  Someone on one of the pregnancy boards that I read, posted something about sweet tart jelly beans and starburst sour jelly beans.  Around Easter, I use to love jelly beans anyway, but when I saw her photo, in addition to just reading what she said, I knew that I needed to sample some, so I did.  Jeff ended up hiding the rest of the packages from me, (because I asked him to) so now I won’t have anymore.  I just wanted a taste.

I also “caved” with ice cream.  And I put “caved” in parenthesis because I didn’t completely cave.  I found the absolute best, healthy ice cream and it’s delicious!  It’s called Arctic Zero and it’s only 150 calories for the whole pint; plus it comes in many delicious flavors.  One top of that it’s fat and lactose free.  I personally love the cookies and cream flavor, but I really want to try the cookie dough. 

Health/Fitness:  I’m finally feel that I’m getting back into a good workout routine, so hopefully I don’t mess it up too much when I’m up in Michigan.  I plan to take a pair of weights with me and can also run and do body weight exercises.

As far as this week goes, I’ve been getting up and going to the gym at least 3-4 days so far, plus I’m also working out at home using my treadmill and weights.  I’ve been a little afraid to step on a scale lately, because let’s be honest, no one really likes watching themselves gain weight, but I finally did today.  I just wanted to make sure that my weight gain was on track, which it is.  Hopefully it continues this way, because at this rate I will only gain the recommended 25-35 pounds, however every pregnant women is different.

I also invested in a Polar heart rate monitor this week and after just one use I can tell you that I LOVE it!  I’ll tell you more about it, and it’s features later, once I get use to everything.  I’ve only got to use it once, as it just came in the mail yesterday.

Looking Forward to:  I’m really looking forward to my two baby showers that I have coming up this weekend and next.  I know it might be a little early, but I’m traveling up to Michigan to visit friends and family and I’m so lucky to know such wonderful people who want to honor our little boy!  I’ll post some pictures when I get back!

My Week in Review:  Overall I had a really good week!  Griffin’s been kicking a lot more (it feels so weird) and Jeff has been able to feel him, we had a blast at the NCAA tournament, I went to breakfast with some friends, we worked more on the nursery, I trained a few clients, met with a friend about designing her wedding cake (yes, I’m a baker too), and packed to head up to Michigan.  Oh yeah!  We also couldn’t resist buying this Minion outfit to take pictures of Griffin in.

Speaking of Michigan though, it’s a 12 hour drive and just me, so I had better go and get on the road.  I hope that everyone has a great and productive week!  Remember to set goals for yourself and aim to accomplish them.  I’ll leave you with this…..it’s just a quick glimpse at some of the workouts I knocked out of the park this week..

 Baby Griffin is starting to show more! 

I’m not sure how you feel, but this past week definitely seemed long to me.  For awhile time was going by so fast but this week it just seemed to come to a screeching halt.  I did have quite a bit going on though and wasn’t able to update with more posts like I wanted to.

Update Time!

How Far Along: 23 weeks

Maternity Clothes:  Quite frankly, I haven’t been feeling too confident lately whenever I go to put on clothes that I don’t wear for working out.  Due to this, I finally caved and went to the mall to do some shopping.  I ended up buying eight maternity tops and ordered a pair of jeans that I wanted.  All of that should cover me for the rest of this pregnancy; or at least I hope so.  I do know that I want to buy at least another dress or two for some baby showers that I have coming up in late April/early May, but those are the only other articles of clothing I plan to buy.

Highs/Lows of the week:  I usually only have highlights to share from my week, but not everything that’s happened this week was good.  I’m sad to say that I lost my grandma on Tuesday afternoon.  Her breathing was shallow when she went down for a nap, and she just never woke up.  As sad as it is to lose anyone we love or know, I’m glad that she didn’t suffer and went peacefully in her sleep.

Now that I’ve set a mood of sadness and probably brought you down a little, let’s try to reverse it because not everything this past week was bad.  I did have quite a few highs, or good things that happened.  For one, Jeff and I went this past weekend and picked out almost all of our baby furniture for the nursery and then we began to set it up.  Everything is slowly starting to come along, but I know that I still have a lot more to do.  Here are a few pictures though, just don’t judge, because it’s a little messy and I have some things to hang and organize.  I also have a cover to go over the stars cord that matches the wall color, so you won’t be able to see it.

Another high from the week is that I felt a few real kicks from Griffin.  I keep expecting more now, but he is apparently stubborn.  I can’t wait for the day that Jeff can feel them too.  I know that he wants to.

Exercise:  Yay!!!  My treadmill is finally fixed again which means that I can, and have been walking on it at my usual incline!  I just hate that I’ve been tiring out a lot quicker these days.  I’ve also made it to the gym at least 3 out of 5 mornings and even went in this past Sunday for a great extra workout.  Running, at least this week, has seemed a bit challenging.  My legs have been tiring quickly, but hopefully I’ll get back into it.

Cravings:  I’ve still really been craving pizza, especially a Hawaiian pizza!  Yummy!  Well, I kind of caved yesterday.  I didn’t order a pizza, but I did make a Hawaiian pizza at home.  I kept it healthy though and made it with a homemade cauliflower crust.  It was under 400 calories for my whole pizza!

I’ve also been craving sweets and chocolate, so here’s a picture of the snacks I use to fulfill those cravings when they hit.  I’m trying my best to be good.

What’s Next?:  Jeff and I have an incredibly busy weekend ahead of us.  Pretty much all day tomorrow we will be in attendance at the 4 March Madness NCAA basketball tournaments that are being held here in Charlotte.  It should be a great time, and as a bonus we get to watch them all from the comfort of a suite.  After that, we plan to continue working on the nursery.  On Saturday, we a couple of items that we want to go out to IKEA and pick up.  (I love that we only live about 20 minutes away from an IKEA!)  We also have one or two small projects that we plan to design.  All of these things are going to make for a busy weekend, but it’ll definitely be fun.  These things have to get done too, because the following two weekends I’ll be up in Michigan visiting family and friends.

Hopefully everyone is having a great and productive week!  I love keeping up with everyone and hearing what you’ve been up to; both in your everyday life and with your current fitness routine.  I’ve been posting more on my Instagram lately, so if you would like to friend me, I’ll make sure to accept. My username is jamielu27.

Griffin is finally starting to show more.  Honestly, I’m not a fan of a growing belly, but I know it will all be worth it.  I’m a little uncomfortable showing my stomach now, but it’s life, and I already started showing it awhile ago and feel it should continue.

Enjoy your week!

Wow!  It started to hit me yesterday that I only have 17 weeks left!  To some of you, 17 weeks may sound like a lot of time, but I’m a big time planner and I feel that I have so much to do….. I’ll share my list in a minute, but let’s start from the top.

Update Time:

How far along: 22 weeks

Clothing:  With the weather finally starting to warm up, at least for this past week, I’ve been able to wear some of my comfy dresses.  It looks like starting today or tomorrow though, I might have to go back to my maternity jeans.  I also had a slight clothing dilemma this week (well truth be told, pretty much every week), but every time I go into a store, I always seem to find a cute, regular size top that I really want.  I know that they won’t fit me right now, but I just keep thinking that it will one day.  For the most part though I’ve been pretty good and don’t buy them.  However, I happened to be at my favorite store, Lululemon, this week and ended up buying a pair of running leggings in my usually size.  I didn’t want to buy a larger size and have them fit me now, because then once I lose the baby weight I couldn’t wear them anymore and felt that it would be a waste of money.  I look at my new purchase this way….it will be a part of my motivation to lose the weight more quickly.  For those of you who aren’t familiar with Lululemon, the thing about them is that their patterns are constantly changing and sell out incredibly fast.  If I didn’t get the running leggings now, I knew I  never would; which is why I went into the store.  Plus, I may have a slight addiction.  It seriously is the best workout apparel!

The shirt and running pants aren’t going to be worn together

Missing:  COFFEE…….I went out for coffee with a good friend this week, and of course got a decaf, but I miss my usual cup, or two, or three, of coffee.  And the coffee house never smelled so good!  My nose seems to be picking up the fragrant aroma everywhere too.  I absolutely love the smell of it!  I sense it at the grocery store, my house (my husband still drinks it), when I go places like target (they have a Starbucks), different restaurants, and even if a salesclerk somewhere happens to be drinking it and has it sitting off to the side.  It’s really been teasing me lately.

I’ve also been missing my memory this week.  I always laughed when friends would say they had “pregnancy brain”, because I always just thought it was an excuse for being late or forgetting something; however this week I’m really starting to discover that it’s for real.  For one thing my days have been completely off.  I woke up Monday and REALLY did think it was Friday, and then on Wednesday I thought it was Monday.  The worst though was when I went for coffee with my friend Sara.  She came to my house to pick me up and I decided to go out through the garage (we have one of those code boxes).  I ended up punching in my “code” and tried to close the door at least 10 or more times before I finally gave up, went to my car, and just took out the remote.  For the life of me I couldn’t remember how to close my garage door.  Sara just laughed and I had to too.  How pathetic!

Cravings:  I realized this week that I’ve been incorrect in my other posts.  I have had one REALLY strong craving every week throughout this pregnancy, and that’s pizza!  All that I want is pizza, and everytime a commercial for it plays it’s agony.  The reason I forget about it, or have never mentioned it, is because I haven’t given into that craving.  I’m feel I’m getting weaker though, but am trying my best to stay strong.  So others then pizza, I haven’t had any food cravings this week.  For some reason I actually haven’t been very hungry at all this past week, and eating has been more of a forced thing.  My stomach has been feeling really full but I tell myself that it’s been awhile since I’ve eaten, so I need to eat something.  Once I actually start eating though, I realize I want food, and eat quite a bit, but it’s the full feeling beforehand that makes me not want to.  It’s strange and I’ve really been trying my best to make healthy choices.

Health/Exercise:  Well it happened again.  I broke my second treadmill in just over 6 years.  Last time it couldn’t be fixed though, because I burnt out the motor, so Nordictrack sent me a brand new treadmill for next to nothing.  It was great!  This time the handle bar broke, so they are sending me a replacement piece.  I do have a nice little bruise on my arm though, curtesy of the wall.  I’m still not sure exactly how it happened either because the piece looks like it’s made of concrete.  I do use my treadmill a lot though, at least compared to most people I know.

Other than the treadmill I’ve also been working out at the gym a lot more and starting to increase my intensity again.  I know some of my family/friends worry a bit, but I just remind them that this is my job and that I know what I’m doing, plus what I’m physically capable of.  In addition to this, my doctor is fine with the way I workout.

Movement:  I’m starting to wonder if Griffin is ever going to really move in there?  Just my luck, he appears to be a stubborn baby already.  No, I’m totally just joking.  It’s strange though, how much you can already love someone you’ve never met.  I will say that I’ve felt little butterfly like movements a few times, but they never last long, not even a minute.  I just wish I could feel an actual kick or two, and I know that Jeff is becoming excited to feel something.  Hopefully soon!

Highlights of the week:  I started working on things for the nursery a little bit, while Jeff was out of town.  It was fun and kept me busy.  I ended up making some crates to store books or toys, and also painted some whale art.  If you don’t already know this about me, I love to be creative and have a few more ideas of things I plan to make for Griffin’s room.

Before

After

I also received my first baby present in the mail!  My mom and dad were so nice and bought us our BOB Flex Revolution Jogging stroller that we registered for.  I can’t wait to get outdoors and run with Griffin.  He will definitely grow up in a physical active environment and know his way around a gym!

What’s next:  Oh my goodness, I’m starting to freak out a little.  I still have so much to do and only 17 weeks left!  Here’s what’s on my list.  Some of it I can get done thorughout the week, but what’s stressing me out is that the things I have to do with Jeff can only be done on the weekends and I will be in Michigan for 2 of them, so really that only gives me 15 weekends, assuming Griffin doesn’t come early.  Plus we have some visitors coming over 2 other weekends (which I’m excited about) so that really knocks it down to 13.  Agh! Time is running out.

• 1. Buy baby furniture
• 2. Set up nursery
• 3. Design and arrange nursery closet
• 4. Tour hospital
• 5. Take infant first aid/CPR class (I already have mine for personal training, but I told jeff I’d go with him
• 6. Attend birthing class (haven’t officially decided if I want to)
• 7. Attend a breast feeding class
• 8. Organize kitchen
• 9. Get carpets cleaned
• 10. Read my parenting books
• etc…..

I know that everything will eventually get done, but I have to keep reminding myself that if it doesn’t, it will be ok.

I guess that’s really all there is for this weeks update, however I’ll be checking back in next week, and will hopefully post a few things in between.

No Excuses!  That’s my motto and I’ve pushed myself through quite a few obstacles.

I know that some days are definitely easier to get things done then others, but if every day were the same, life would get boring.  I honestly believe that it’s during those challenging days when we discover what we’re really made of.

With that being said, I hope that everyone’s workouts have been going well over the past few days.  I know that with day lights savings time it may have made working out a little more of a challenge, especially for us morning workout folks, but hopefully you still got one in.  I managed to get complete a short run yesterday, before my knee started bothering me a little, and was also able to make it to the gym this morning for an excellent all body workout.  Here’s a glimpse at a few things I did, but there was actually a lot more to it.

I plan to walk on my treadmill later too (for some additional cardio), or would actually like to get outside for a walk; just as long as it’s not raining.  Buffy, my little yorkie, always likes to go with me.  She eventually gives up though and I end up carrying her, but that’s mostly because her little legs won’t make it the whole way.  At least she tires and I don’t mind carrying her, she’s only  about 8 lbs.

I’m not sure where everyone who reads my blog lives, but I must admit that I’ve been enjoying the awesome weather that’s been around my home this past week!  I love being able to get outside and not freeze.

Enjoy your day and try to get in some form of physical fitness.  Even a 10 minute walk is better then nothing!  You can do it!

I’m not sure if anyone else ever experiences this, but each time that I get back from a vacation it always seems to take a few days to get back into the normal swing of things, and this week is definitely no different.  It’s been filled with a lot of laundry, errands, and cleaning.  I’ve also been trying to get back into my normal workout routine, but unfortunately have been experiencing a little bit of leg pain, and have therefore been taking it somewhat easy.  Thankfully I think that it’s finally starting to feel better, so hopefully I’ll be back to running some tomorrow.

Now that I’m no longer on vacation, it’s time for my traditional update on baby Griffin…..

How far along: 21 weeks; officially over halfway (at least I hope)

Maternity Clothes:  I’ve been wearing my maternity jeans a little more often, but mostly because they are just so comfortable; otherwise I’ve been wearing my usual workout clothes.  The nice thing about yoga pants and tank tops are that they’re stretchy!  I’ll admit that I really enjoyed the warm weather on the cruise though, because it gave me a chance to wear some of my spring dresses, and those are the most comfortable.

Cravings:  I still haven’t had any real true cravings, at least compared to what I hear other women talk about when it comes to food.  I’ve determined though that I shouldn’t be allowed to go to the grocery store by myself.  I always end up walking past something and thinking, “oh, I need that.”  In all fairness though, my husband does the exact same thing and he’s not even pregnant.  I did end up buying some bread, peanut butter, and grape jelly when I went to the store on Monday, because for some reason a PB&J sandwich sounded like heaven; however I have yet to make one.  I’ve only made peanut butter toast and now I had Jeff hide the peanut butter so I won’t eat it all.  Pregnant or not, peanut butter is a weakness of mine.

Missing:  I’m missing my usual energy levels this week.  It’s been a little overcast some days and when the weather is like this I seem to drag a bit.  I also miss my normal workouts.  I didn’t work out at all last week, and because my leg has been bothering me slightly I haven’t worked out too much this week either.  I did make it to the gym this morning though, and also got in close to an hour on my treadmill, so hopefully it will pick back up now.  I really want to get back to running though and I miss being able to do my heavy weightlifting.

Nesting:  I’ve always heard people mention a phase during pregnancy called ‘nesting’ and I swear that I must have entered into it this week.  I’m on cleaning and organizing overload.  So far I’ve completely gutted and organized our pantry (my husband was like, where did all the food go?), I dusted all the kitchen shelves, wine bottles, and even hand washed all the wine and speciality glasses that we keep on display.  I also started organizing the kitchen cabinets and my closet.  I had to stop though because I need to go to IKEA this weekend and get some things to help me organize better.  I plan to pick up some storage boxes, baskets, drawer organizers, etc.  When Jeff gets home on Monday, he’ll be so surprised with how clean this house is.

Feeling the love:  I just have to brag for a minute and say that Jeff and I have such a wonderful group of friends and a loving family!  Griffin isn’t even born yet and I already feel like he’s spoiled, but in such a good way.  Numerous friends of ours have offered to host baby showers, my sisters have bought, or made quite a few personal gifts, and my mother crocheted us the most beautiful baby blanket!  We are so blessed.

Well that’s enough about me, I hope that everyone else’s week has been a good one, and I look forward to seeing some of you in the gym and hearing what you’ve been up to!

Jeff and I just got back from a fantastic 7-night cruise that took us to the tropical locations of Cozumel, Grand Cayman, Jamaica, and Castaway Cay.  Apparently we couldn’t have asked for a better week to go either, because the weather reports showed that it apparently snowed here in North Carolina, yet we were getting to experience some wonderful 80 degree and sunny weather.

Everything about our vacation wasn’t smooth sailing though (pun intended) and unfortunately Jeff and I had a rocky start to our trip.  We were actually part of the 1% of people that happen to catch the Norovirus on cruise ships.  It wasn’t too bad though, however we were quarantined for 24 hours.  Luckily for us it hit during the night, and we only missed being able to leave our room on a sea day.  I wouldn’t say we really missed it either, because we slept ALL day.  I probably needed the rest anyway, and was able to use it to recover from my 1/2 marathon the day before.  Once Tuesday morning rolled around though, we were perfectly fine.  The only down side to being ill was that it messed up my workout routine, and because my stomach was kind of feeling funny all week, I ended up not working out at all for the entire trip.  For me that’s a big deal, but I suppose everyone deserves a break.

Just because we didn’t run or go to the gym doesn’t mean we were lazy.  We actually managed to get in a good amount of physical activity, especially during our port adventures.  In Cozumel we walked around, explored the Mayan ruins, and stopped at the beach.

In Grand Cayman we kind of took it easy and walked the streets, went to some shops, and visited the beach.

Jamaica was also a lot of fun and I faced my fears by actually being brave and going down into some caves.  Jeff and I haven’t been to Jamaica since our honeymoon 10 years ago, so it was exciting to be back!

When we were at Castaway Cay we chose to relax by the beach and when we got tired of that we decided to walk around the island and out to the observation tower, which was easily over 4 miles total.  At least there were fun things to see along the way, and we tried not get get run over by the people who were riding bikes; especially the kids.

In addition to the physical activity that we got on our port adventures we also liked to take the stairs onboard the ship.  (Except for the first few days because my muscles were still sore from the race and wouldn’t allow me to climb)

All in all Jeff and I had a great time sailing around the Caribbean and it was a wonderful way to celebrate week 20, (my halfway point) in my pregnancy.  Another bonus to our vacation is that my sister Shannon, actually works onboard the cruise ship, so we got to spend quite a bit of time with her too.