memory lane

I just signed in to my MySpace account for the first time in, I don't know, at least 6 months (probably more.) Shit's changed over there, I think they're trying to imitate Facebook, and it's not working. But! One good thing that came of me moseying over was I got to look through all the photos I have on there that I'd forgotten about! So many good ones. I was so happy about my little trip down memory lane that I decided to come over and share some really cool teenaged photos with you. :)

Trinity & John (emo flippy hair, say what?)

 

Ashley! Pink hair! Kittykat ears!

The weekend before I moved back from Mesa. Spent it with Kileen.

trip downtown with Steff, met some people, crucified Pooh Bear

smoking some special hookah with Moosen!

Ashley there for some moral support on a tattoo day

Me & Steff drunk and happy

John and Me <3

omg. I could literally put hundreds of super sweet old photos up here, but I realize that could get really obnoxious so I'll leave it at this. Plus it's waaaayyy past my bedtime (gotta get as much sleep in as possible because soon, you know I won't be getting any at all!) so I'm off to bed. Have a good night! ♥

Oh, Christmas Tree...

As you can probably guess, I haven't had much to write about lately. Life has become quite boring as of late - and all I've really been doing is sitting around at home waiting to go in to labor. Not necessarily the most exciting way to spend your days. I'm just trying hard to focus on staying relaxed and letting nature take its course, seeing as how my due date is only 3 days away!! My doctor told me today that I haven't dilated any more (again) but I'm 70% effaced now. He is hoping I don't make it to Monday for my next appointment. :)

Anyways -- as I am sitting at home a lot doing nothing, I decided to put up the Christmas tree! John put it together for me a few nights ago, and I decorated it while he was at work the next day. We got new ornaments this year to make it a little brighter and more festive (last year it was black and purple) for Kaetana's very first Christmas. I am so, so excited it's not even funny. I want to get some non-ball ornaments for it, though. I am thinking of getting a custom "First Christmas" one for baby.

So, that's about all the update I have at the moment. Hopefully I'll be telling you aaaall about my new baby here really soon, but in the meantime sorry for being so lazy and inactive and I hope everyone enjoyed their Thanksgiving weekend. ♥

*insert something clever about Thanksgiving here*

I love Thanksgiving. Every year, my family all gets together at someone's house (totally bullied my Grandma in to hosting this year so I didn't have to go anywhere obnoxious) and everyone brings food, and it's always delicious. Plus, my dad made pies yesterday. LOTS of pies. I'm stoked. Maybe I can push the baby out via eating my weight in holiday food!! I'm going to try, for sure.

Okay, so now that we've established how stoked I am about today's food festivities, I might as well mention a few things I'm thankful for. Cliche for a post? I don't care.

John

He lights up my life, and I love him more than anything. It's nutty to think that we've only been together (almost) a year and a half, and we're already where we are. Certainly wasn't planned this way, what with having a baby and all, but from the moment I met him I knew he was the one for me. That sounds super lame and hokey, but it's so true. We just clicked right away, and he is honestly the very best thing that's ever happened to me. I know we're going to have the best life together and I am thrilled and oh so lucky to have him.

Kaetana

I realize she's not quite here yet, but I am infinitely thankful for this little girl in my belly. She took us all by surprise, but was obviously meant to be since I was faithful to my birth control like no other woman I've met. It was truly shocking to think it failed me. SHOCKING. But, I'm so so glad it did. John and I are young, and not necessarily in the place financially we'd like to be, but the prospect of being parents to her dwarfs everything else. Neither one of us can wait to meet her. We can't wait to take her places, show her things, teach her how to be a good person, and we are going to love her more than anything else no matter what. It's so exciting.

My Friends

I have the best friends, I swear. There have been an abundance of hard times, sure, but so many more wonderful happy ones. I've gone through my fair share of "friends who aren't really friends" and sadly I've been known to ditch out on my true friends for the funner people I meet on occasion, but luckily I've grown up and dropped all the fakes and I'm back to being happy with the loves I have! (That made me sound kind of awful.)

My Family
I love my family. They're funny, and ultra quirky, and incredibly persevering. We've all made some serious mistakes in life, and each has paid or is paying for those respectively. I've been known to disassociate myself from the majority of the fam because of their choices and behavior, but one thing I can say about them is no matter how low things get - how shitty, how hard - no one has ever once let it break them. We're a stubborn, hard headed bunch, and that'll never change. If it wasn't for my family, and my Grandparents especially (love them), I'd probably be the most boring person ever. I've gone through some shit, sure, but it's definitely made me wiser.

I could probably keep going, but I'm tired and need to go get ready for dinner at Grandma's house. So I leave you with a Happy Thanksgiving, and a hope that you have many things to be thankful for. I'll be back later (maybe) with a 39 week update.

A nice saying.

Twitter!

I did it.

I made a Twitter account.

Follow me!

Clothes!

Ever since I found out I was having a girl, I've been obsessed with looking at clothes for her. There's the obvious little baby stuff she can wear now, but recently I've started branching out and looking at stuff for when she gets bigger. (Much, much bigger...)
So, I think I may have stumbled across the cutest little girl clothes of my life. They're by MishaLulu, and I am in LOVE. Here are some favourites to daydream about my little girl in one day. Seriously, so cute.

38wks & what Kaetana will look like?

<---- This is what Kaetana will look like, according to TheBump.com and all I can say is....what a forehead! 

So, today I hit 38 weeks and I'm getting more and more anxious! There are only 2 weeks 'til my due date left.
2. weeks. WHAT!

Not a whole lot has changed since last week, except that at my doctor's appointment yesterday he informed me that I had gone from being high and closed to 2cm dilated, and 50% effaced. Woo, progress! I really hope to have her next week, to be honest. Oh, I also tested positive for group b strep which is a bummer and kind of changes my labor plans. Basically I have to go in to the hospital a little earlier than we had originally wanted to make sure I get the proper dosage of antibiotics before the baby comes. I talked to my doula about it yesterday and she is confident that we can still labor at home for a decent amount of time before heading in, though, so that was reassuring. I just know it will help me immensely to be at my house during early labor. So much more comfortable, relaxing, and it will definitely help me avoid getting an epidural. I have all the faith in the world that I can do this pain medication free!!! As for after the baby comes, the doctor said we're going to have to stay an extra 24 hours for monitoring to make sure the baby didn't contract the infection (and to catch it if she does.) Chances are very slim that she will, so I'm not really worried. Especially if I get the antibiotics. It's something like 1 out of every 2,000 babies contract it, and the likelihood goes down even more when the mother gets the antibiotics. I'm definitely starting to feel the effects of this pregnancy really weighing me down. For starters I am a freaking house. I've never felt so huge in my life. If I had more energy I'd go take a photo to put up here, but I don't so I won't. I've also never peed so frequently in my life, which is saying something because I have a notoriously small bladder even when not pregnant. It's awful. I think I woke up 7 times last night between midnight and 9 this morning. I have also been having mega contractions while I'm in bed. The full moon is 3 days away, so maybe she'll make her appearance then! I heard that lots of babies are born on the full moon.

Okay, enough rambling for me. Have a lovely day! ♥

...and I thought I was hardcore...

Words cannot express the geekiness seen in this video.

Fun Photography Day!

I got to do a photo shoot today for my good friend Cayla and her boyfriend, Matt. It was a lot of fun, and I'm happy to say I haven't completely lost my touch!
At least I don't think.

You can click on the collages to make them bigger.
I made them so there wouldn't be a mile long photo post.

All American Girl

Not a lot of people know this about me but I love country music. Love, love, love. It's like my guilty pleasure of sorts. Not that I'm embarrassed. Anyways - this morning while I was cleaning up the mess the boys made last night (they're such slobs) I put on CMT because they were doing music videos, and I heard this Carrie Underwood song, All American Girl. 30 seconds in to the song I was bawling!! So spazzy. But I decided to share the video here because I loved the song, and I love Carrie Underwood, and I feel like it. So, enjoy! Or don't. Whatever. :) Oh, and I definitely did not cry because of the video, it's so cheesy. Just the song.

I'm boring.

I don't have anything interesting to update with, because I haven't done anything for the past week or so. Today I've been feeling really crummy and am staying in bed for the entirety of the day. Hopefully I start feeling better soon! I would also like this little girl to make her entrance right now. :) Anyways, I found this photo on my computer while I was attempting to organize my folders this morning and I decided I'd throw it up. This picture makes me laugh. It's from New Years last year, and I am shocked by how much we've changed since it was taken! John is in the process of growing his hair back out so he can have the mohawk again, too. I love him.
Well, I hope everyone is having a more exciting week than me! And a great weekend, too. ♥

Our Birth Plan

Today at our appointment with our doula, Laura, we wrote up our birth plan. I think it turned out pretty good (and flexible) and am really hoping we can achieve most if not all of the things covered.

*****************************

Birth Plan

Amanda Sellers & John Vallejo

    - This is our first child, and we are hoping to have as natural birth as possible, but we are flexible in case of emergency. We will have a doula, Laura Nyman, attending the birth along with my sister,  Holly Bierhaus. We would like to keep any other friends or family out of the room during the labor and birthing process, and would appreciate any help achieving this (if the situation should call for it.)
    - Our chosen Pediatrician is Dr. James Mick with Ponderosa Pediatrics.

A few medical conditions to be aware of:
    I have no allergies.
    I am hypoglycemic.
    I have activity induced asthma.
    I have broken my tail bone in the past.

Labor:
    - I would like the freedom to walk, move around, and change positions at will throughout labor.
    - I would, if possible, like to be allowed to eat.
    - I would prefer intermittent fetal monitoring unless my baby shows sign of distress.
    - Please do not offer me any pain medication. I will ask for it if I feel the need to.

Birth:
    - I would like to avoid pushing while on my back or sitting to prevent pressure on my weak tailbone.
    - I would like to try to wait until I feel the urge to push before beginning the pushing phase. While I will accept advice on how to push, I would also like to listen to my body and push when it tells me to.
    - I do not wish to have an episiotomy.

After-Birth:
    - Assuming the baby is in good health, I do not wish for the umbilical cord to be clamped and cut until after it has stopped pulsating. Once it has stopped I would like my partner, John Vallejo, to be the one to cut the cord.
    - Assuming the baby is in good health, I would like to hold her skin-to-skin immediately after birth and to delay any medical procedures.
    - I would like all medical procedures to be fully explained to me or my partner, John Vallejo,  before they are performed. Please do not perform any procedures without consent from one of us.
    - I do plan to breastfeed, so please do not give the baby any bottles or pacifiers.


After our baby is here, my partner and I would like a few hours of private bonding time with her before we see any visitors.

********************************

If you've had babies before, did you write a birth plan? Was it successful?

My day.

I just finished a math test that I completely forgot about until a half an hour before it was due -- online classes are so NOT for me. I'm waaayyy too forgetful to actually do the work on my own. Oops. So I did pretty crappy, didn't get all the questions finished on time, and overall it brought my score from an 84% to a 77%. Poo.

But! I'm not letting it ruin my mood because today has seriously been great! I love Tuesdays (and Wednesdays) because they're John's days off from work and I get to spend time with him. It's so nice, because these days I tend to just sit at home by myself online. Also, I had a doctor's appointment this afternoon and was pleased to learn that everyone is still going really nicely. I've had some pretty intense upper abdominal pain that stretches from one side right to the other, and I mentioned it to the doc who said it was normal. Apparently, it's caused by stretching (can you believe I didn't think of this? I was sure I was dying, or one of my organs was bursting open.) and it's all the worse for me because I'm so short my abdomen has to stretch a little more than normal. Faaaaantastic. In addition to that, I mentioned some period-like cramps I've been experiencing a lot lately, and he told me they were contractions. Who knew?! Well, they suck but he said they're not going to go away so unless they become regular and stuff, I'm gonna have to deal with them 'til real labor kicks in.
Baby is also head down (no big surprise there - she has been for about a month) but she's also really low and "in position" so that makes me happy! I didn't think she dropped because I swear her butt and feet are still frequently lodged into my ribcage, but again with the shortness being a factor there. She's dropped down, but that isn't saying much for a baby with like zero room to be in the first place. Lastly, I found out I'm not dilated at all! I was surprised because as some of you may remember, I was dilated at a 1 when I was 27 weeks. Guess I closed back up? I didn't even know that could happen. So hopefully there will be some progress this next week that he'll tell me about at our next appointment. I'm glad to be going every week now! Only 22 days left 'til she's due!!

In other news, John and I bought a new washer and dryer this afternoon! I'M SO FREAKING EXCITED! Our crappy dryer broke over a month ago, and I've been having to deal with trekking over to my grandparent's house to do our laundry since. That's such a huge pain in the butt! I'm really glad to be able to sit at home and wash our clothes again. :) And maaayybe crochet something because I got some needles!

So I'm off to bed now, and I hope everyone had a wonderful Tuesday as well. Goodnight! <3

Crochet!

I've decided I want to learn how to crochet. I used to think stuff that was made this way always looked really old and granny-like, but I've gained some sort of appreciation for them. I think it will be fun, and I hear it's faster than knitting! So that's a big plus. Maybe I'll even learn how to do hats for Kaetana!
How about you? Do you knit or crochet?

Oh, and here's some stuff I found that might just inspire me to actually do it:

 

 

[one] [two] [three] [four] [five]

Marisol Spoon

Today I discovered a seriously amazing artist shop on Etsy called Marisol Spoon, and I have to say I am in love with these prints. The work is clean, beautiful, unique and overall quite lovely - and there are a few favourites I just might have to get for Kaetana's room.

 

....and this locket is amaaaazing:

*sigh*
I need to stop finding beautiful things online to buy.

36 Weeks

Today I hit week 36! I'm so excited, this means I only have 1 MONTH left until my due date! Commencing freak-out mode right about...now. No, but seriously, I really am so excited. Next week I'll be full term - and she'll be good to come out any time. Though I must say I'd like her to stay in there and cook a little while longer. I'm not completely ready for her yet. :)

I am, however, completely ready to not be pregnant anymore. My body is done, done, done with this carrying around another being thing. Lately it's become really difficult to move around and most days I feel like a beached whale. John frequently has to help me sit up off the couch, or the bed, and nighttime? Forget about it. It usually takes a good minute to actually GET UP out of bed by myself to pee, which I do 5-7 times a night. Not to mention the fact that I've started having contractions only at night while I'm lying down. Apparently that's normal because it's the only time of day where our bodies truly relax and this late in pregnancy that means contractions. They're not fun, but they're not too bad either.

I am in the process of figuring our my birth plan at the moment, as well. It's difficult because there are so many variables when it comes to child birth and I don't really want to get too dead set on a specific plan in case it can't happen. On the other hand though, I see the merit in writing down what I'd like to happen as long as everything goes well and we're both healthy. I may post it up on here when I'm finished, because I need to get it done fairly soon. Because, again, she'll be here any time!!!! I mean max 6 weeks.

Anyways, I hope everyone is having a lovely week! <3

This made me cry!

Okay, so this morning I was lurking the community over at Baby Center and a woman posted this link. The comments were all about how the article made them all weepy and stuff, so of course me being a hormonal pregnant lady had to go look. Well it made me all weepy and stuff, too.

I liked this because the woman handled the situation exactly as I hope to handle any similar situation I come across. Not that I hope to come across any kind of situation like that, but if you're aware of the world we live in, you know I probably will. Anyways, it sucks to know that some people can be so shitty and cruel, and it's a good reminder of what NOT to be.

Scrapbooking!

Some of the supplies!

I've never scrapbooked before, but I've always wanted to. I used to work at Michael's, a craft store in town, and I would spend a lot of time putting away all the crazy cool little supplies and wishing I had the money/time/creativity to actually do one. Well, thanks to my awesome friend Anna, the time has come! One of the (super amazing) gifts she gave me and John at our baby shower was a big ol' box FILLED with supplies to make Kaetana a scrapbook. There's tons of paper, stickers, punch outs...everything you'd need for a really cute, really easy book. I'm stoked, and I'm starting it today! I'm excited! :)

Oh and before I forget - Happy November everyone! <3