Our boy is growing!

Well, today I had an ultrasound. Technically I am supposed to be 34 weeks, however our boy was measuring on average at 36 weeks. He is already chubby and they estimate his weight to be a little over 6 pounds already! All things considered, he is looking like more of a mid-January debut after all; today their guess was January 18th. His head is down, smooshed up against my hip bone, with his feet conveniently located in my ribs (I did not need an ultrasound to tell you that one!)

I am still feeling fine....just really pregnant all the sudden. My back aches like crazy and my belly is so tight- it is harder to sleep and he seems a lot heavier to carry around during the day. However, all in all I feel good and I really can't complain too much since he hasn't given me that much grief until now. And I think he is supposed to- I mean it has to get so uncomfortable that you are willing to give birth to get him out, right? So we are hanging in there :)

Merry Christmas!

It won't be long now...

We are getting close to D-day...Tiny will be arriving in about a month or so! I have had a pretty easy pregnancy up until this point, however I can tell that we are getting close to the end because I am definitely getting more uncomfortable. It isn't really that bad and I can't complain since the other months have been great...still, most mornings around 4am I am pretty ready to be done. Usually 4am is about my third trip to the bathroom during the night- and it is when I am still so tired but can't manage to get comfortable laying down any more- and it is when I am about ready for a snack- and it is when Koshka is ready to wake up and play.

The skin on the upper right side of my belly has been so sensitive lately- it kind of feels like I have a scrape or burn or something on it. It hurts to have anything touching it but it isn't red or anything. The other day I had a sharp pain there for a little bit, but it went away before the doctor's office opened the next morning and so I didn't call. There is also a spot in the middle of my back that aches often...it feels great when I have the heat pad on it or when Nick rubs it, but the pain always returns. At least these are among my biggest ailments so far...but oh what I would give to sleep on my stomach! :)

Other than that, things feel good. I have stopped jogging and started just walking...even though when I walk I wonder why I am not jogging because walking doesn't seem like that much of a workout when I am used to trotting along. But boy oh boy did I get a workout cleaning the house yesterday...as if the regular cleaning routine was not enough to work up a sweat, I cleaned behind the fridge and washing machine & dryer and I broke a mirror that shattered all over the tile in the kitchen. Let me tell you, bending to clean that up was fun.

We, well Nicholas, got accepted to the MBA program at the University of Denver this week (with even the promise of a little scholarship money!) They are the first school we have heard back from, so we definitely haven't made a decision or anything but it was really fun to get accepted :) Hopefully we will hear back from the other schools before too long and then the real fun of making our decision can commence. But in the meantime, congrats to Nick!

We have a busy weekend planned and then an ultrasound on Monday, so hopefully after that we will have a better idea of exactly when baby V is going to arrive (they are planning to set a date to induce if I haven't had the baby by then.) Until then we are trying to enjoy the holiday season that will be over all too quickly. Fa la la la la!

We need your input please...

A long time ago, before we were expecting Tiny V, I made Nick promise that he would buy me a video camera....at least before we had kids. Well, time is getting short and we are on the lookout to buy a video camera. Any recommendations?

Mostly I want to be able to have something that isn't too cumbersome to throw in my bag, can quickly capture a few minutes of whatever adorable thing our boy is doing, and then easily upload it to my computer or a disc or something.

So, any thoughts?

It's Friday!

I really should have cleaned out the closets and under the bed and such before there was a big ole' baby in the way. But I was working then and didn't have nearly as much "free" time. One great thing about this apartment is that we have a couple of good sized closets that helps with storage...however, does one ever really have enough closet space? My favorite find today was a Yoda head with a couple of hockey pucks in it...logically stored in the tool box in the entrance closet. Someday Nicholas will have a man-cave where he can display all of his wonderful things for all to see :)

Today was my first day of "retirement" on the jogging front...my parents left early this morning and thus I am short one running partner. I decided this would be the most convenient time to retire from jogging for a couple of months, until I have had our big baby boy and recovered enough to hit the pavement again. I toiled with the idea of not going at all today...in fact I watched all of Good Morning America and ate a cupcake just because. I thought about maybe just walking instead, but I ended up jogging anyway. I only went three miles, instead of the usual five, and stopped mostly because I was hot- I had definitely overdressed for the sunny weather we enjoyed today. I felt better as soon as I had gone...and really great when I was done...so I guess there really is no end to my exercising in sight. Obviously my body was tired though because Koshka and I had a snooze together after my shower- I am finding myself waking up many more times than I plan to in a day!

I wish someone would come over and appreciate the cleanliness that is our front closet. I think I should get a prize for finding a way to make all our weird stuff fit (with hopefully enough room for the stroller that is currently being stored at my parents' home...along with a whole bunch of other stuff I don't even want to think about!) The linen closet still needs some work, but I have cleared off an entire shelf that can be devoted to baby V.

The only other interesting thing that happened today was that Koshka found a ladybug at the window- hiding in between our double panes. I am not sure how it got in, but I opened the first pane so she could play with it...and I do believe I saw her eat it after awhile. So all in all, it has been a grand day for us at home! Happy Friday!

Hey Big Haircut

(2 points for you if you know what the title is referencing!)

So last week I went to get a haircut. I was just planning on a good trim to keep it healthy...it was time for one and I wanted to make sure I got it done before the holidays and then the baby arrives. When I sat down in the chair the girl asked what we were doing today and I told her my plan of a good, healthy trim. She said that on my account it said that last time we added in some long layers and asked if I wanted to trim and keep them.

"Long layers?" I thought. I don't remember having layers in my hair...but then again I am forgetting more and more things these days so I figured I had just forgotten and agreed. She started cutting and it was definitely a bit more than I would call a trim...but who knows when the next time I would get in for a haircut would be and so I let it go. I mean, after all, once they start cutting what can you do really anyway?

Then she started adding in the layers. Whoa...there was a lot of hair falling. I am fairly positive that I did not have long layers before- that note must have been from awhile ago or something. But again, what do you do when half of your hair is already cut?

The verdict- I am not a fan. I thought I would give it a few days...after all I have to figure out how I need to tweak my morning routine now and that could take a few days to perfect. But I have tried it a few ways and none of them make me love my hair yet. It seems really short and choppy...at least compared to what it was before. My ponytail seems so short and it is hard to pull it up to run in the mornings like I used to. Nuts.

Oh well...hair grows.

Why do I want to be nomadic?

This is a question I found myself asking multiple times this week. I have been trying to get ready for our giant of a baby- clearing out space, bringing baby things in, taking lots of stuff to my mom's to store, etc. All the while I was trying to put up a few Christmas decorations as well as shop for Christmas presents. Often I would get frustrated..."Why do we have so much stuff?" I would ask myself. That would lead to me going through things again, trying to figure out how to get rid of anything so it seemed like we didn't live in a land of clutter. You may call this "nesting" or just the "Christensen gene", but the fact remained that I have been bothered by having so much stuff.

Part of the problem is that we need all of that stuff...we use a lot of it fairly regularly or definitely want to keep it for the future...so I am not sure what I can get rid of to make more space. Maybe I just need more space! Obviously we need more space since we are adding to our family, but we are in our current lease for a few more months...plus we aren't sure where grad school will take us in the next year.

Then I got thinking- why does it bother me that we have so much stuff? Isn't that what people dream of? Isn't that what people work for? To get stuff? Then why is it that I feel like we have too much? I didn't always feel that way...for a long time I loved to shop for anything but now even the smallest thing seems more of an inconvenience. I have had an extremely difficult time this year making a Christmas wish list because I don't want anything! And at the same time, of course I want lots of things. But Christmas shopping has not been as joyful as it usually is this year and it is not just because my feel get tired quicker and I have to find a bathroom every three stores.

For so long I was used to moving every semester and making sure that all I owned could fit into and on top of my car; why do I still want to be able to be a nomad? Why am I still in that college state of mind? We are adults now and we own furniture and lots of other things and it is never going to fit in our cars. Face it- when I move, I will need a Uhaul. So what? That is okay, right? But for some reason it bugs me.

So our poor baby doesn't have much of a chance...already I am thinking "oh he can do without that" to many things lots of people would view as a necessity. And maybe, just maybe, he will get some things that I wouldn't normally buy because we will get them from others or on craigslist or something but it won't be because I go and get them for him. (Don't get me started on how painful it is to spend money...dang frugalness!)

Anywho, that is all of my ranting for now because Nick just got home from the dentist. There wasn't a point to this post other than I just needed a place to complain for a minute, so if you made it all the way through to the end, congrats to you.