Monthly Archives: February 2012

V-Day Cynic

Posted in Holidays, Kara and Kyle, Love by

I will have to say, I’m not really all for Valentine’s Day. I’m not against it, but I didn’t get all upset or depressed when Kyle and I decided not to do anything special.

So, when “V-Day” rolled around yesterday, I was happy just to wake up next to my husband, have him kiss me on the cheek and wish me a Happy Valentine’s Day. I was happy with the two of us going to my doctor’s appointment together and hearing Baby I’s heartbeat. (Which is good and strong, btw!)

I don’t know if it’s because I spent 5 years working in customer service where I watched frantic men buying over-priced cards, flowers ($30 for a dozen roses!), and chocolates for their loved ones, but I’ve always thought it was hilarious and marginally pathetic when they came into the store right before closing time only to find a beaten-up bunch of carnations.

I’m not one for public displays of affection, mostly because I embarrass easily, sweat and turn an awful shade of red when all eyes are on me. Flowers delivered to work are my biggest fear.

I think I got nauseous every time I seen someone write “I have the best husband/boyfriend/fiance in the world!” on Facebook/Twitter yesterday. Yeah, you and 1,000,000 other women in the world!

Yes, you can safely say that I was quite the Valentine’s Day cynic yesterday. I was 100% okay with Kyle and I just enjoying our evening together making dinner and cookies. I was looking forward to it!

And then? Then I came home from work and Kyle told me to go look in a drawer because he said he bought cool new headphones for his iPod. Because it’s ridiculously easy for him to fool me, I believed him, only to find this:

His excuse? He couldn’t go through our first Valentine’s Day married together and not do something nice for me. I cried.

So I guess that makes me a cynical hypocrite, because I can’t wait to go for my massage.

It still doesn’t make me a sucker for Valentine’s Day though ;)

How did you celebrate, if you did?

Ten on Tuesday

Posted in Ten on Tuesday by

1. How do you feel about Valentine’s Day?
I’m pretty neutral about it. It’s really not a big deal for Kyle and I. I find everything to be stupidly overpriced and gimmicky.

2. Are you in love?
That I am – I love my husband very much!

3. What is your favorite love song?
Probably “Marry Me” by Train. I walked down the aisle to it for my wedding, and it still makes me all teary-eyed.

4. Did your parents do anything for you on Valentine’s Day when you were a child?
We’d get a little goody bag with chocolates and candy.

5. What is your love language? (Click here if you want to take the quiz.)
My scores were Words of Affirmation: 6, Quality Time: 9,  Receiving Gifts: 2, Acts of Service: 9, and Physical Touch: 4. So, according to the quiz, my love language is quality time. I’m not sure how much I agree with it, but oh well.

6. How do you celebrate Valentine’s Day? Gifts? Dinner?
We usually don’t celebrate. (See my answer for question #1!) We’ll do something like go to a movie a few days before or after the actual “holiday” and say that’s how we’re celebrating.

7. What is your favourite flower?
Gerbera daisies for sure!

8. What is your favourite love story? (Book and/or movie.)
Movie-wise I think I’d have to say The Notebook. I haven’t read too many romance novels, so I don’t really know what my favourite book would be. I’m leaning towards Marley and Me. Rather unconventional, but it’s an amazing story of a man’s love for his dog. As a dog lover, I totally get it.

9. What is the most romantic thing someone has ever done for you? Or you have done for someone?
Kyle and I aren’t really all that romantic, but I would say when he proposed to me it was the  most romantic thing he’s done. He bought a 1/2 dozen of my favourite cupcakes and when I told him he was the best boyfriend ever while eating one, he made me close my eyes because he had a surprise for me. I did, and then when he told me to open them he was down on one knee with the ring. With a mouth full of chocolate cupcake, I immediately started sobbing. I didn’t expect it at all!

10. How did you meet your spouse/significant other?
We originally met in Grade 2! Kyle had a huge crush on me ever since, and we used to have play dates when we were little. As we got older I never gave him the time of day, until one summer in high school when we hung out one evening and got drunk. (Classy, I know!) I’ll admit that I still didn’t have feeling towards him then, until a couple months into the school year when we were in cooking class together. We hung out again one night, and after he dropped me off, I regretted not kissing him goodnight. I told him that when I logged onto MSN Chat when I got home (because that’s how we got shit done back in the day), so he came back to meet me, I told me dad I dropped my keys and had to go find them, and we finally kissed. Almost 10 years later, we’re still together today!

21 Weeks and the Plan

Posted in Baby #1, Pregnancy, Pregnancy Update by

When I first met with Dr. O, he gave me a government-regulated book called “Baby’s Best Chance.” It’s put together by a group of health professionals with insights from parents on the ins and outs of pregnancy, and what happens to you and your baby as your pregnancy progresses, from conception to birth and beyond. Basically, it’s What to Expect When You’re Expecting. (Which I actually don’t own, nor do I plan to)

Anyway, there’s a lot of talk about having a birth plan: What you and your spouse want to happen when it comes time to giving birth. Natural? Some meds? Drugged right up? C-Section? There’s a lot of different options out there for women these days.

For me, I’m not going to have a set plan and play everything by ear. Why? Because it sounds like a lot of women who have had a set plan in mind usually have to go with something else come delivery time because of complications of some sort. Planning to go with an all-natural, at home birth ends up with an emergency visit to the hospital; plans for a vaginal delivery in hospital turns into a C-Section, etc., etc.

I’m not saying this because I think plans are ridiculous to make for the delivery of a child, I’m just saying I don’t want to set myself up for disappointment. I’m also not saying that every woman who has had to divert from their plan was disappointed in their birthing experience. In the end, I’m sure that they’re just happy to have their little one in their arms, safe and sound.

So what is my “plan”, exactly? Well, I’m still not 100% sure. I know I don’t want an at-home birth, that I definitely want to be at the hospital. My doctor is a baby-delivering mastermind, so I have no worries there. Then, like I said before, I want to play everything by ear. I’ll fight through the pain as best I can before begging for an epidural and I won’t resist a C-Section if there is the slightest chance of Baby I being in danger. (And I mean slightest, mostly for personal reasons I’m not willing to discuss.) I’m also not against the idea of being enduced if she’s taking her sweet time arriving. I do know that I want to keep the cord blood if it’s feasible and not too expensive. This is something I’ll discuss with Dr. O at a future appointment.

I actually admire women who go through at-home, all natural childbirths because I think they’re pretty brave for doing that with their first born. I don’t admire women who want a C-Section just because they’re worried about what childbirth may do to their vag. That’s what it’s there and designed for!

There you have it, my “plan”, or lack thereof. Maybe it’s because I’m a “go with the flow” kind of person, but I’m really not getting myself all worked up about how my child comes into the world.

Now onto your regular programming:

How far along? 21 weeks

How big is baby? About 10 ½” from crown to heel, according to BabyCentre.ca!

Total weight gain/loss: I weighed myself last night at my MIL’s, and I’ve gained about 4lbs since the last time I weighed myself (about 2 weeks ago). So, I’m actually up 4lbs from my regular pre-pregnancy weight! It seems like I’m getting bigger and bigger every day; In fact, my belly button is slowly starting to “pop” out. It looks really weird because it’s fairly deep normally, so seeing the inside is strange. Kyle thinks it’s hilarious.

Maternity Clothes? Kyle took me shopping a couple weeks ago and I bought some shirts and a pair of pants for work. They flatter my bump a lot better than my regular clothes and I can actually prove to people that I am indeed pregnant, lol.

Stretch marks? Still none, yay!

Sleep: I’ve been getting heartburn almost every night, which is horrid because I’ve never suffered from it before, and I’ve been waking up sweating to death. Other that that, it’s the usual peeing every 3 hours or so.

Movement: Lots! Baby I is a little motor monster! She really doesn’t like it when I’m at work, I think. She seems to move around the most there!

Food cravings: Whenever I see something that looks appetizing on TV I want to have it. Usually it passes though. The only thing that makes me want to hurl when I see it is uncooked chicken. Yuck.

What I miss: Last week I went to my chiropractor and she had a special pillow to support my belly as I laid on my stomach so she could adjust my achy hips. It really made me miss sleeping on my stomach.

What I am looking forward to: My hips to stop hurting. They hurt soooo bad, it’s awful. By the end of the day I can barely get up off the couch to go to bed.

Milestones: Stroller shopping! Kyle, my mom, and I went to Babies R Us to look at a stroller that was on sale for a wicked price, and it’s gorgeous AND really good! They were all out of the colour we wanted, so I have a raincheck for whenever it comes back in stock. Here’s a photo from their website:

At first I was apprehensive about buying a 3-wheeled stroller, but it rolled so smoothly and was fairly easy to collapse down and bring back up. Plus, it’s a travel system, so the car seat just plunks right into the stroller while Baby I is still little! The coolest thing? It has a built-in auxiliary cord with speakers for an iPod! Really, I wouldn’t buy this stroller just for that, but since it’s on sale for such a great deal, it’s a nice added perk. It also came in purple, but since it’s a more girly colour we went with the green. That way Kyle won’t be too embarrassed to push it around.

Photo: 

What do you imagine your plan to be when you have kids?
If you have kids, what was your plan and did it work out that way?