Maternity clothes (and a manatee)

Well, it finally had to be done. At 20 weeks, I finally had to bust out the maternity gear. I took a few hours on Sunday to dig it out of the depths of my closet and then wash it so it was ready to go for work on Monday. So far, it’s been … OK. That might, however, have something to do with the fact that I’m still in my regular PANTS. The shirts were the real problem – just too tight across the chest and belly. I figured it wouldn’t be such a good idea to pop a button and put someone’s eye out. Although, if that DID happen, the unfortunate soul couldn’t be in a better place – hello, Kellogg EYE Center!

With Harmon, I made it to July (my sixth month) before the circus tent clothing made an appearance. I almost made it that far this time (I’m in my fifth month) but, alas, the body (well, the abdominal region) remembers.

I guess I can handle four months of the maternity gear if I get another kid as cute as Harmon in the end. The hard part, though, is looking and feeling like this:

Morning sickness eats it

OK, I’m almost 21 weeks along so enough of the morning sickness already.

I’ve felt nauseous 24/7 since the day I took my pregnancy test – only getting a break while I am SLEEPING. Granted I haven’t puked as much as I did with Harmon but I’ve FELT sicker. Yesterday was a crappy day and today is even worse. I puked right after brushing my teeth this morning and then had to have Kevin pull over on the side of the road to puke again on our way into work. Right now, I’m fighting off another puking spell. I have a meeting at 10 a.m. and then a doctor’s appointment at 11:30 a.m. so I hope I can get through both of them puke-free.

I hope I have a better day tomorrow because this is getting to be ri-goddamn-diculous!

Birthday weekend

Yesterday, I turned 35. Ever since I hit 30, I really don’t even think about birthdays anymore. Sometimes, I’ll even forget how old I am - must be the aging brain. Anyway, despite getting older, I had a great birthday weekend! On Saturday night, Kevin and I dropped Harmon off for a sleepover with my parents and we headed downtown to the Tigers’ game. One of my presents was tickets to the Champions Club. The Tigers’ started offering these last month and it looks like they will for the rest of the season. I must attest that they are worth every cent of the $90 per ticket!

We arrived early and ate WAY TOO MUCH food from the impressive spread (the dessert cart was amazing). We also camped at two seats along the windows and ending up staying there for the whole game. While we originally planned to wander the ballpark (part of the $90 was a standing room only ticket), it was simply too nice up there to leave. The only thing that ruined the night was the outcome of the game – GD White Sox!

On Sunday morning, we slept in until 9:30 a.m. and then squeezed in a showing of Step Brothers (so funny) on the way to my parents’ house. I asked my Mom to make taco salad for dinner and chocolate cake for dessert and both were perfect. As for the gifts, I got a few small things (a new Adidas Michigan LS t-shirt, a cool electronic photo cube for my desk, gorgeous orange daisies, etc.), some cash and some gift cards to do some post-pregnancy shopping. I requested NO maternity items – what a bummer that would be for a birthday. Kevin and Harmon also got me pedicures for August and September at a “real” spa (I’ve never been) so I’m hoping to schedule one this coming weekend. I am so excited and pedicures are SO underrated – especially when you’re pregnant and are having a hard time reaching your toes.

One of the best gifts, though, was having Harmon sing “Happy Birthday” to me this morning. He was too shy to do it with everyone else last night so he sang it to me this morning while he was eating his breakfast. He is the sweetest, cutest kid ever!

You want a piece of me?

Usually the answer is, “no, I don’t want a PIECE, I want the WHOLE THING.” But this was not the case for Harmon who was involved in his first schoolyard rumble (kind of) last Thursday.

As the story goes, Harmon and this other little boy (I will withhold his real name but let’s call him Jordan) met at the gate that separates the classroom from the stairwell. Harmon was on one side and Jordan was on the other and they both wanted to come through. Evidently, Harmon put his hand up (in a “talk to the hand” kind of fashion) and, while he didn’t TOUCH him, Jordan still took exception and bit Harmon’s right index finger. Stunned, Harmon didn’t know what to do so – like most 2-year-olds – he cried. His teachers gave him lots of hugs and kisses and iced his little finger and he was fine. When Kevin arrived to pick him up, his lead teacher explained what happened but didn’t tell him who the culprit was. Harmon was having none of that, though, as he interjected with “Jordan bit me!”

On the way home, Kevin did everything he could NOT to tell Harmon to “bust the kid in the mouth” and we had more than a few bad things to say (under our breath, of course, about the cretin). Kevin also later told me that Jordan was in the classroom and standing near the door when he picked up Harmon. He said he wanted SO BAD to smash his fingers in the door – I DIED!

Although I highly doubt Harmon will get pushed around as he gets older I’m glad, in this case, that he was the bitee, not the biter. If he was biting kids at school, we would have a big problem on our hands!

It's a boy! Oh, boy-oy-oy-oy

We are pleased to report that Harmon will have a baby brother, Simon Abner Bergquist, in December. His due date is Dec. 13. Here is the latest ultrasound photo of Simon, taken July 15. Simon would not sit still during the ultrasound; he kept spinning and kicking and punching, just like his big-brother-to-be. I have a feeling we are in for another active one. Simon did not want to show his "boyness" at first, but finally came around, literally, at the end. The ultrasound tech thought she knew early on, but did not want to say for sure. But, she did say something like, "he is an active little guy," so we had our suspicions. Harmon is so happy; he tells us that Simon is in Mommy's belly and he rubs the bump. Aimee is doing fine, and all was normal during the ultrasound.

On the road again

After a week in Minnesota with Kevin’s family, we are off again this weekend for another Bergquist family function. This time, Kevin’s cousin is getting married in Beloit, Wis., so we’re making the drive. Although we’re going for the wedding, Kevin and I are sneaking off to a Brewers game on Friday night. I can’t wait to see the Sausage Race! To make the weekend even better, we MAY stop in Chicago on the way home on Sunday. If we do, I have these three things on my to-do list:

1. Cheesecake Factory – Note to Godiva Chocolate Cheesecake: I still love you. My pregnancy nausea and food aversions have not changed that.
2. Garrett Popcorn Shop (mmmm, cheesecorn)
3. Niketown (I can buy clothes for when I’m no longer the size of a small manatee)

Harmon will have fun too. He’ll get to use his favorite backpack again, there’s a pool at the hotel and there will be plenty of people there to spoil him rotten!

All in all, should be a good one!

Turning the corner

Kevin and I hope we're turning the corner with this potty training business. Exhibit A - check it:

Harmon went potty THREE TIMES at school yesterday! I was a little nervous he might revert back to trying 4-5 times each day with no results but he stepped it up. He also stepped it up over vacation rarely going in his pull-up and telling us he had to go when we were out and about. I really hope this continues because he's got some really cool Mickey Mouse and Handy Manny underwear awaiting him in his dresser drawer.

Alive and kicking (like Simple Minds)

It’s definitely true that you feel your second child’s movements earlier than your first. Baby #2 has been doing a number on me for a couple of weeks now. It started around my 15th week and has continued to get stronger each day. Even though I’ve felt it before, it’s still so cool. At this point, I just can’t wait for Kevin to be able to feel it too.

Pregnancy Update

I hit the 17-week mark on Sunday and it seems, for the most part, that my nausea has subsided. I would call it morning sickness but it was more like an ALL-DAY sickness. I didn’t throw up as much as I did with Harmon but I think that’s only because I knew what to do this time around – thank God for the combination of Vitamin B6 and Unisom. This little pill cocktail limited me to TWO yak sessions total, as opposed to two yak sessions EACH DAY before. It does work wonders.

I’ve noticed the belly has appeared sooner this time. I guess those muscles are already stretched out so they’re like “what the hell!” I’m still in my regular clothes but will have to break out the maternity gear very soon. With Harmon, I made it to July (my sixth month) but I don’t think I’ll be able to make it that far this time. It’s funny, I thought the body transformation would be easier to deal with the second time around but it’s not. It’s still hard and you still wonder if you’ll EVER go back to normal. I guess, when it comes right down to it, I’m just not one of those women who likes being pregnant.

I feel like I’ve been more tired this time but I think that’s deceiving. Before, I didn’t have a 2 ½-year-old to chase around so maybe that’s a simple explanation. I also feel like I’ve been more hungry but, again, I don’t know. I DO know that if I DON’T eat, I go downhill WAY TOO FAST and it takes a while to recover. I’ve had no real cravings and no real food aversions, other than Starbucks. Before I got pregnant, I would visit Starbucks 3-4 times a week (bad), going through countless gift cards and Starbucks’ cards re-loads. Since I took the pregnancy test, though, I’ve been there ONCE. The mere thought of a Light Mocha Frappuccino or a Peppermint Mocha makes me SO ill. It’s the weirdest thing, I swear. Kevin is STILL stunned. He jokes that a representative from Starbucks is going to call the house to find out what’s wrong! Not all caffeine has been banished, though. I still love Diet Coke as much as ever.

One other food-related item – I would like to pimp Crispix cereal for helping me stave off many yak sessions. While I’m sure I’ll never want to eat it again after December, it has been an important ally in my battle against nausea. In fact, I had some this morning and it helped yet again so THANK YOU, CRISPIX!

My ultrasound is one week from today (July 15) and Kevin and I are SO excited. While Harmon was a surprise, we are hoping to find out the sex of #2. I hope he/she cooperates so we can begin to prepare and, most importantly, we can tell Harmon who is on the way – Maizey or Simon.

A few things I miss already …

I came back to work today after being off for almost two weeks and these are things I already miss:

1. Wearing capri pants or shorts
2. Wearing sandals everywhere
3. Wearing t-shirts (I never realized how annoying collars can be)
4. Not wearing a watch (and thus not knowing what time or, hell, even what DAY it is)
5. Not wearing my glasses

I realized all of this earlier as I got ready for work. I think the worst part was putting big black shoes over my freshly-pedicured, banana-yellow painted toes – UGH!

I guess that’s why vacation is called vacation and work is called work. I am looking forward to my usual Friday off more than I have in a LONG time!

Back from Minnesota

Still trying to get caught up after our family vacation in Minnesota. Will document our five days at the Bergquist cabin on Upper Gull Lake later. Some things we learned: Harmon is an angel on planes, mosquitos love his skin, and The Power Loon is lame. Happy 4th to all!