and we’re having….
We had our anatomy scan yesterday. That was by far the most fun appointment we’ve had to date! Everything looked good. We saw all the organs and everything seemed in the right place. 
We did see that the heart had 4 chambers but were unable to get a clear picture and measurements due to Baby Bruneman’s unwillingness to cooperate! But the doctor said everything else is on track and sees no cause for concern. I am going to have another ultrasound at 26 weeks to get a better picture of the baby’s heart. My doctor said just to be excited that I get an extra ultrasound. He really said there was no cause for worry. So yay!
Okay, okay now to the fun part. Keith and I are officially (no doubt about it) having a baby BOY!! We are beyond thrilled and it was a very emotional moment for both of us. A boy! A baby boy! I could not be happier! People asked me all the time if there was one gender over another that I wanted and the answer was always the same, “as long as I have a healthy baby I do not care!” And that is still exactly how I feel. Knowing that I am having a boy is just icing on the cake and secondary to the doctor thinking everything looks healthy and on track.
Fun Baby Facts:
Movement: I haven’t felt anything yet. Which makes me sad but after seeing how active he was on the ultrasound yesterday I’m no longer worried. Its weird to see something moving inside of you and not be able to feel it. It will happen soon. I’m confident!
Cravings: Still all about the salt! Oh my goodness…anything salty! I am also still loving cheese (of all kinds) and I am having a serious love affair with carbs! OUCH! But I am just going with the flow and enjoying everything! I am starting to tolerate chicken better but my number one crave worthy protein is shrimp!
Maternity Clothes: Wearing them! I actually found some jeans and capris from Ann Taylor Loft that I love. I had this mental block about not wanting to be in maternity clothes until 20 weeks but I started wearing them at 18 1/2 weeks and love them! I also started getting a little insecure with how big I think my bump is but a good friend told me that I just needed to enjoy being pregnant and not worry about it. She told me I have waited a long time for this baby so just love every stinkin minute of it. And she’s right….who cares if I started wearing maternity clothes sooner than 20 weeks. I have a healthy baby growing happily inside me. Enough said.
Weight Gain: No idea. I know myself well enough to know that I can definitely get hung up on numbers. So I told my doctor unless I am either A)gaining too little or B) gaining too much I would prefer not to know how much I weigh. He was totally fine with that. So all I know is that I am obviously within a normal range because he hasn’t said anything to me yet! And that is just how I am gonna roll.
Mood: Usually good. I get really ultra cranky when I am hungry and tired but other than that I seem to be pretty happy. I will say I am a lot more relaxed about everything these days. I finally feel like I can breathe. I still get nervous but don’t have any major panic attacks like I was. I am trying to be a lot more even and focus on the joy and beauty of everything.
Weird Symptoms: I’ve fainted twice. Thankfully both times I didn’t fall! But it was unsettling and a tad embarrassing considering one of those times was inside Nordstrom. Doctor said it isn’t uncommon but it isn’t common. I have low blood sugar and pressure and I just need to make sure I am drinking TONS of water and eating something every 2 hours. No exceptions.
So that’s it. Baby BOY Bruneman is already a star in my world!
let the countdown begin…
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
SCHOOL IS OUT FOR SUMMER!
I can not believe that the school year is over. In some ways it feels like school just started and in others it feels like it is has been a long year. I might cry on the last day because I truly had a sensational class this year. My class was amazing!! I really will miss them so much!! I was always that kid who cried on the last day of school (this baffles Keith and he wonders how on earth he married such a nerd! )
But I can say that I am definitely looking forward to summer! I have so many things I want/need to get done. But I am hoping to also stay off a schedule and get some rest and relaxation along the way. Plus Keith and I are taking an amazing vacation while my brother house sits for us. Can. Not. Wait. All in all it should be a great summer.
My one complaint….the weather. I am already dying. It is in the mid to upper 90′s now and being pregnant I am running exceptionally hot. Add a Texas summer to the mix and I am not happy. My goal in life is to one day be able to afford a summer home in Colorado. Texas in the summer is not my friend. In fact, I down right hate it. And not like just hate it but haaaaaaaate it.
But, here’s to 5 more days until summer. I know Bella will be a lot happier with someone home to entertain her all day.
Do you have any summer plans?
we will make it just fine
Some would say that I love my dog too much. Humpf. To quote, “As if!” (Oh Clueless)
Last weekend my in-laws came to visit and they made it clear that Bella has no boundaries.
Just to be clear, she does have boundaries but we are okay with her cuddling in bed with us and getting on the furniture. She is really just a big love bug.
“Yo Bitches, What do you mean I don’t have boundaries?”
Since Bella was a rescue dog she came with a bunch of fears. And one thing she seemed to be scared of was her own voice. She barked so infrequently that when she did let one slip she would get this look like, “was that me?!?!”
As she has gradually gotten more comfortable in our home and now knows she is in a happy and safe place she has taken to strutting her stuff. Barking when that doorbell rings or when someone walks down the sidewalk. And keep in mind she is a Rottweiler. Her bark is fierce. But her bite? Uh…more like a lick?
“Don’t mess with me? I’ll tear you up!”
She has also gotten a lot more protective of me since she senses something different. I really think she knows I’ve got a bun in the oven. She goes in phases where she won’t leave my side and where she doesn’t like anyone coming near me.
“Enough with the kisses, sheesh!”
We schedule weekly play dates for her and take her to day care three days a week. She definitely has her share of what Keith calls “doggy stimulation” and if that makes me a crazy dog mama then that makes me a crazy dog mama. I just can’t stand the idea of her sitting in our house all day long alone. And she only likes the backyard when someone is out there with her.
“I will only sun myself if you watch”
This dog saved me. We got her after the second miscarriage and she brought so much mothering to my life that it eased the pain somewhat. It also made me less angry. It was hard to be so angry and so pissed off at the world when I saw her face everyday.
What’s not to love?
So you know what? My dog may not know all the fancy commands (but sit, lay down and hug) and that’s okay with me. She may like to chew all the stuffing out of her stuffed animals and holes in Keith’s socks. She may like to sit on my lap and sleep in my bed but that dog loves me and Keith something major. And the feeling is entirely mutual. I know introducing a baby into her life will be an adjustment. Heck, introducing a baby into my life will be an adjustment. But I have a feeling we are going to make it just fine.
10 facts about my marriage
I saw this article the other day online where Ashley (the bachelorette from a few seasons ago) shared 10 facts about her marriage to JP. I liked it so I am copying it here.
1. Keith does the majority of the chores around our house. I am pathetic when it comes to chores. In fact, as appalling as my mother finds this, I do not even own an iron. The only chore I do regularly is laundry on Sundays. But Keith does everything else. I win the worst wife award for sure.
2. No matter what bed we sleep in, Keith always sleeps closest to the bathroom. At home, out of town, in hotels, etc. Not sure why but it is always like that.
3. We never eat Italian food out. Ever.
4. We talk a lot.
5. Even though our bathroom has two sinks I use both. Keith has no real defined space in that room. And I don’t even wear makeup or anything. I am not quite sure why I need so much space in there.
6. We have so many nicknames for Bella that she now routinely will come/answer to the following names: Bella Boo, Booski, Knuckles, Knucklehead, and Angel Muffin. It’s a good thing she can’t talk because I feel certain she would say her name is Bella BooBooskiKnucklesKnuckleheadAngelMuffin Bruneman. Such a mouthful.
7. Speaking of Bella we have started adding “Yo Bitches” to pretty much anything we make Bella say. (Kinda like the old fortune cookie trick of adding “in Bed” after every fortune). So for example, if she is standing by the front door one of us will say, “Yo Bitches, someone gonna take me for a walk?” or if she jumps in the bed with us, we will say, “Yo bitches, make some room!” Ha. It makes us laugh every single stinkin time. We now both joke that we need to stop saying it or else our kid’s first words are going to be “Yo Bitches.”
“Yo Bitches, why you always taking my picture?!”
8. I exaggerate a lot. Accidentally. But now Keith knows me so well that he just accepts my exaggerations as commonplace. For example the other day I was in the shower and I saw some ants and I immediately shout, “Oh my gosh there are like 50 ants in here!” Keith without missing a beat responds with, “so like 5?” I count. “Yup there’s 5 ants.” He knows me well.
9. On Sunday mornings I turn on Soap Net and watch reruns of 90210, One Tree Hill, Veronica Mars and Gilmore Girls. Until football seasons starts (and once it ends) Keith accepts this as his life. Just as I accept that during football season the only channels my TV will see are SportsCenter, NBC and Fox.
10. We write love notes to each other all the time. Just little notes that we leave around the house for each other a few times a week. I think it makes us both feel loved and appreciated and at the end of the day that’s what it’s all about.
Any random facts about your marriage and/or relationship you want to share?
17 week cravings
The number one question I get 99% of the time is, “Are you having any cravings?”
17 weeks!
Oh man.
1. Salt. I am craving salt like nobody’s business. I mean just hand me a salt shaker and I will pour it down my throat. Anything salty is appealing and then, as you might expect, anything sweet turns my stomach. Salt. Salt. Salt.
2. Cheese. I am having a seriously weird love affair with cheese right now. I don’t even really like cheese normally. I mean I could days/weeks without ever eating or thinking about cheese. Now? Oh my word. I want cheese every day and multiple times a day. And any kind of cheese, too, I don’t discriminate. Cream Cheese, Cottage Cheese, String Cheese, Cheddar Cheese, etc. I know there are some soft cheeses I need to stay away from and that isn’t a problem. But all those other cheeses….get in my belly!
3. Pirates Booty. For real I am 7 but I love this stuff! I feel like it is better than Cheetos and Pringles but I am probably just fooling myself. Please don’t tell me otherwise. I eat a little individual size snack bag every day for lunch. Every. Stinkin. Single. Day.
4. Subway Salads: No clue where this came from but I eat this for lunch pretty regularily. And by regularly I mean 3-4 days a week. HA! My go-to salad is lettuce, spinach, tomatoes, olives, green bell pepper, pickles, banana peppers, 1 scoop of avocado, chicken and oil & vinegar for dressing. Oh my gosh so good. I want this right now!
5. Chinese Food: My guess is because it is so salty that it appeals to me. And SHRIMP. Oh my word…any Chinese shrimp dish. I try to limit my fish intake but for real the only protein I really crave is shrimp.
Those would be the basics. Obviously I eat lots of other foods but those are the things I tend to crave the most.
how i’m feeling
So. I’ve made it to 16 weeks! I thought surely when I made it to 14 weeks I would relax. Then 14 weeks came and went. I am now at 16 weeks and am still just as nervous and fearful as I was at 6 weeks.
16 weeks
I am trying. I am really trying to enjoy this pregnancy. But I feel like I’ve been robbed. Robbed of the joy that pregnancy brings. There are days when I do forget and am happy but more often than not even on those days when I am glowing with happiness lurking in the dark corners of my mind is the fear. Recurrent miscarriages will do that to a person I suppose.
The problem is I have definitely hit the second trimester high. All those nasty first trimester pregnancy symptoms are gone. I’m not sick, no more food aversions, I’m not tired anymore, and I have way more energy. In short, I feel like my old self again. I just feel like me, not a pregnant version of me. Most women can’t wait to get to this stage. But the problem is my baby is still too small for me to feel any movement and that makes me wonder. I don’t feel bad anymore and I don’t feel a baby…is everything okay in there?
My other fear stems from the fact that I don’t have typical miscarriages. I don’t get cramps and bleed. I have what you call missed miscarriages (which I’m told is very rare.) Meaning the baby dies and then my body for whatever reason holds onto the baby. My first miscarriage happened 3 weeks before and I found out when there was no heartbeat on an ultrasound. The second time it was the same thing only it was 2 weeks when I found out not 3. That scares me. Because my body doesn’t traditionally miscarry in the way you would think. And since my pregnancy symptoms have lessened and I can’t feel the baby move yet….I worry.
I guess what I am slowly starting to realize is that there will always be another milestone to get to. I can say well when I get to 20 weeks I will feel better. But you know what? When I get to 20 weeks I will say if I can get to 24 I will stop worrying. The truth is I am going to worry until I give birth. And then a whole new set of worries will kick in because I will have a BABY! I don’t think I will ever not worry. So the issue becomes how to cope and manage that worry? I almost feel like I need to give myself permission to worry and not beat myself up about it. But I also need to find the balance between a healthy amount of worry and an unhealthy amount.
Sobbing so hard I start hiccuping? Not a healthy amount of worry.
Googling every little thing? Not a healthy amount of worry.
I do visualization and that helps. It always makes me feel good and it makes me smile seeing, in my mind, a healthy baby. I talk to my baby all the time. I reassure him/her that this is a safe place and that we love him/her very much. I tell the baby to take whatever it needs from me to grow strong and healthy. I pray all the time for the baby and I make the effort to try and think two good thoughts whenever a bad thought enters my mind. It isn’t easy and I don’t always succeed on that last one. But I’m trying.
I’m really trying to hold it together, believe that this will happen, trust in my body, in God, and in my baby. I’ve never wanted anything more.
almond crusted chicken tenders
Last night I posted this picture on instagram:
Almond crusted chicken fingers. They are so good and they’re paleo for those of you who like that! Win win! The best thing about eating chicken fingers is that it makes me feel like I am eating kid food. It also makes me feel like I am eating something really bad for me when in reality, I’m not. I like it!
Almond Crusted Chicken Fingers
Serves 4
1 pound chicken tenders
3/4 cup almond meal
1 egg
1 egg white
1 1/2 tsp. paprika
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. dry mustard seed
1/4 tsp. sea salt
1/8 tsp. black pepper
Preheat oven to 425F. * Spray a wire rack with cooking spray.
On a plate combine all your dry ingredients. Scramble the egg and egg white together in a bowl.
Dip the chicken tender in the egg mixture, then roll it around on the plate in the dry ingredients to coat. Place it on the wire rack.
Repeat until you have covered all the chicken tenders.
Bake for 25 minutes. The last 2-3 minutes flip the oven to broil to get the tenders really crispy.
* Now the secret to really crispy tenders is to bake them on a wire rack. I always use my microwave rack and place a cookie sheet underneath to catch anything that falls. It works like a charm and the entire tender gets nice and crispy (top and bottom) without having to flip the tenders over at any point. It’s perfect.
You should totally make these. Honestly, I am contemplating making them again for dinner tonight. They were that good. With ketchup….lots of ketchup! Although Keith ate his with horseradish mustard and that wasn’t half bad either.
The possibilities are endless…..
Happy Tuesday Friends!
