I've Upped the Ante!

Instead of just doing 20 Acts of Kindness, I am going to do 26 to honor the teachers/administrators who had their lives taken from them (see previous post).  Since we are leaving for MN tomorrow, I will continue my work there. My mom has volunteered to help too! I love how #26Acts is trending on Twitter and how it has taken the nation by storm! It does restore my faith in humanity a bit!

6. In honor of Dylan, I brought some stray carts from the Target parking lot inside.

7. In honor of Madeleine, I let a woman with a baby cut in front of me at the grocery store (she looked very confused, since I had Emily with me!) I told her about the acts of kindness, and she teared up...

Wish us luck tomorrow...I hope our flight doesn't get cancelled or isn't too rough! It is raining here now, but it is supposed to start snowing at any moment.

Random Acts of Kindness

The shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary on Friday really shook me to the core. Now as a parent, the news hit me in a completely different way than the previous school shootings. In order to honor the children, I decided to perform 20 acts of kindness- one for each child. I started today, and here is what I've done so far:

1. In honor of Charlotte, I bought a Salvation Army bell ringer lunch.

2. In honor of Daniel, I paid for lunch for the person behind me at McDonalds. He, in turn, paid for the person behind him. I am curious to see how long this went on for!

3. In honor of Olivia, I donated infant clothes to Sparrow Hospital- who are in desperate need of newborn clothes. When I was in the hospital with Emily, they had her wearing size 6-month outfits (WAY TOO BIG!) and the nurse said that they rely on donations for clothes.

4. In honor of Josephine, I donated food, personal hygiene goods, and clothes to the Haven House, which provides temporary housing to the homeless.

5. In honor of Ana, I paid for someone's prescription who could not afford it on their own.

I have 15 more acts that I am going to try to accomplish before Christmas. I hope that the nation does something about these horrific acts (and gun control may not be the answer...) and we can get help for those who are mentally ill.

Speaking of Christmas, I am very excited to go to Minnesota and North Dakota on Friday! This will be the first time many in my family and Chad's family that they get to meet Emily! It will be Emily's first plane ride- should be interesting! I am sure she will like it, since she likes movement so much!

3-Month Pictures!

I lied. They aren't actually her 3-month pics, but close enough! (More like 2½ month pictures).

Torque just had to get in on the action!

Thank you Denise for the excellent pictures! They turned out fantastic!

It's December already!

As usual, time sure seems to fly by! Lots has been going on here in the Stroh Household! First, Emily had her 2-month checkup. She weighed in at 9 lbs 4 oz (10th percentile) and was 22 inches long (30th percentile). The doctor said that is fine as long as she keeps growing at a steady pace. As far as development goes, she is right on par. She had her first round of shots, which was quite traumatic (for both mom and baby!) I've never heard her scream so hard- poor thing.
Emily is smiling a lot- like on purpose! It's not just gas or random anymore! It is so much fun! (By the way, this picture is totally going to be one on the Christmas card!):

Also, Emily is laughing! 

Lastly, (and this will conclude my bragging!) she is getting good at sitting up in her Bumbo.  She seems to really like sitting in it for a little while, but her neck gets tired after a few minutes. She enjoys looking at her surroundings! She also likes "airplane rides" from dad! 

Also, Chad's parents, Paul and Denise, came and visited over Thanksgiving. They fought over her all week! :) For Thanksgiving, Chads sister and her fiance came from Chicago and we made a full Thanksgiving meal. We got our Christmas card pictures taken by Denise, who is a photographer- I am very excited to get them from her!

2 Months!

3 Days ago, Emily turned 2 months old! She is almost 9 lbs now (8 lbs 13 oz) and is growing like crazy! Here is a few pictures to prove this! Here is her 1-month picture (she had ripped off the sticker at this point):

And here is her 2-month picture:

Huge difference! She is cooing more and holding her head up like a champion! She can't fit in her newborn clothes anymore, but she has a whole bunch of 0-3 month outfits that she is wearing now! 

Chad's parents are coming from North Dakota to visit for the week! They haven't seen her in person yet, so they are very excited! They are staying until after Thanksgiving-I am looking forward to having them. 

She is really starting to enjoy baths-something I never thought would be possible! Here's a picture of her after a bath: 

She is going through a phase right now where she wants to be held ALL THE TIME! She actually holds on to my shirt so if I attempt to put her down, she'll know (but really, how cute is that!?). If it weren't for her carriers (she has a fabric one AND a baby Bjorn), I wouldn't get anything accomplished!  She actually doesn't mind them!: 

On a sad note, she has Thrush! :( The first medicine that they treated her with made her tummy hurt and she spent the majority of her day crying (that was a bad day!!). They switched the med, and it seems to be doing the trick. Thrush didn't seem to really bother her, but it would've caused problems if left untreated. 

This video is from when she was a month old and I love it since it shows all the sounds she makes!

Halloween Costume!

As promised, here are the pictures of Emily dressed up as a ladybug! Sadly, we had NO trick-or-treaters this year, so she didn't get to look cute for anyone else except us, but we still had fun! By the way, the costume was size 0-6 months, so it was HUGE on her!

"Being a ladybug is really tough work!!" (She slept with her arms straight up in the air since the outfit was so big on her! :) Adorable! )

I almost forgot!

Here is the video of Emy rolling over!!! Hopefully it works- I've never uploaded a video before!

Happy Halloween!!

Happy Halloween from Michigan! We are doing well here and Emy is getting so big! She is growing like a weed! She is getting good at holding her head up, even though it is still a little unsteady. She also rolled over from her tummy to her back for the first time a few days ago! She has only done it 3 times, though, since she really likes being on her tummy.  I got one of them on camera, which is pretty exciting. We have found that she has a few "favorite" things to do: She really likes being held in the kitchen while looking at the revolving fan (She stares at it with her mouth wide open- it is adorable!) She also really enjoys lying on her changing table staring out the window (this REALLY helps us with changing time!) She also loves looking at her mobile while in her crib. She is starting to smile more, which makes me so happy! She loves laying on Chad's chest, which I'm guessing is because of the warmth. Of course, now Chad is positive that she is "daddy's little girl!" My mom and dad visited again, although separately, and my sister is coming on Sunday to visit. We are going to go to the "Walk off the Earth" concert, while Emy is going to have her first babysitter! It will only be for a few hours, since Chad will be home not too long after we leave for the concert.
With it being halloween, we are not going to take her trick-or-treating, but we most certainly are going to dress her up!! She is going to be a ladybug, which was my choice, not Chads. I can only imagine what Chad would dress her up as! I will post pictures tomorrow of her halloween outfit!

I never got to post pictures of the nursery, so here they are!!

And, of course, I have a few adorable pictures of Emy!!

Here she is, in her halloween garb, in her favorite spot!! Looking out the window on the changing table!

Here she is LOVING her mobile in her crib! It is so cute, although the same song plays over and over! I am getting really sick of it, although I'm sure every parent will tell me to get used to this sort of thing!

Here she is with her brother, Torque! He is doing incredibly well with her, although I think he gets sick of her when she cries!

On a separate note, please pray for my cousin George, who, over a month ago, had open heart surgery. He has suffered numerous complications and we are hoping that now he is on his way to recovery. Ironically, all of the complications have had nothing to do with his heart. They are out in Philadelphia, so I really hope that they will be able to transport him back to Minnesota soon.

3 Weeks!

Well, it is Emily's due date today! It has been an amazing 3 weeks. She is truly a happy baby! She hit 6 lbs at her appointment this week- which is great because we were having some difficulties with feeding. I remember in the hospital we were having trouble with her getting 10 milliliters down- now she drinks 60 milliliters at a time easily!
Here are some more pics:

Here she is in the hospital. The hospital only had clothes that were WAY too big for her!! 

On the way home from the hospital- first car ride!

I love this pic! She is CLEARLY not happy with how bundled up she is! But she is just so darn cute!

Her 1-week picture!

That is one proud grandma!

Emily Arlene is here!

Emily is here! She was 5 lbs 11 ounces and is 19 inches long. I woke up at about 3:30am on Thursday with some cramping and I woke up Chad at about 4:15. I told him I wasn't sure if I needed to go to the hospital or not so we decided to give Sparrow Hospital a call. The nurse advised that I come in so they could see what was going on. Chad had to open Menards at 5am, so I drove to the hospital, convinced that they were just going to send me back home. When I got to triage, the nurse took one look at my progress and immediately said, "OK, lets get you to labor and delivery now!" I asked if I should call my husband and she said "Well, dear, if you want your husband to be here for the birth of your child, he needs to come RIGHT NOW!" The doctors and I literally waited for Chad to get there before I started pushing. She was born at 8:38am and weighed in at 5 lbs 11 ounces. She was 19 inches long and she is perfect!
The doctors considered her pre-term so we had to take a few extra precautions but we were cleared to leave on Saturday. My mom is here for a week. Jess and Eric came last weekend and my sister and dad are coming this weekend.
So far, she has been a fantastic baby. She rarely cries (except when she gets hungry!) and has been so much fun! Chad says that he thinks we'll keep her!

Chad was still in his Menards shirt-he didn't even have time to change!

Her first close-up! It is amazing how much she has already changed in 6 days!

Whirlwind Couple of Weeks...

It has been a while since I last posted but we've been busy! I have had both of my showers and this past weekend my mom and my aunt Jan came to help put the baby's room together. Here are some pictures to share:

Because of this, Chad will probably never go to a shower again!!!

I will post pictures of my second shower and also pics of the nursery as soon as I get them uploaded!!!

33 week picture

Torques a Graduate!

Well, its official! Torque graduated from beginner obedience class!! I am so proud of my little boy! I am very happy about the progress he has made in the past 7 weeks. We had to go one extra week but it worked out well because Torque got a 1-on-1 session with the trainer. I also got tips on how to acclimate Torque to the new baby. Speaking of the baby, I had my "emergency" ultrasound this week and everything looks fine. The doctor said that because I am tall and thin, I may not look as big but developmentally Emily is doing great! She is completely on-track growth-wise and everything looks good. She weighed in at around 4-lbs. We did the 3D imaging again and this time we were able to see her face. It may be too early to tell, but I think she has her father's nose! She kept sticking her tongue out during the ultrasound, which was super-cute! I think we might have a stubborn child on our hands though-I wonder which parent she gets that from? ;)
My book club threw me a surprise baby shower this week. I didn't see it coming at all! They all brought food (including cupcakes and ice cream-yum!) and they all got me books to read to Emily! How creative.
Chad and I are going to tour the mother-baby center at Sparrow Hospital in a couple weeks (where I will give birth). That way we'll know exactly where to go when the time comes. We are also going to take a "newborn care and feeding" class soon. At my next doctors appointment, we are going to go over the details of labor and delivery. He has always been extremely helpful with questions that I might have, so I am coming next time with plenty to ask! Our favorite part about my doctor is that he tells it exactly how it is-there is no sugar-coating with this guy. Chad has been able to go to the majority of the appointments as well so I am very grateful that we are all on the same page.
I am starting to get very excited to hold our baby-the time has gone by so quick!

Latest Appointment

I had my 30-week (30 weeks already!!) appointment yesterday morning where I received the news that I did not have gestational diabetes (yay!). Although we are in the clear there, we have to do an "emergency ultrasound" since I measured small. The doctor told me that it might mean something, but it might mean nothing. He said not to worry about it too much since stress won't help at all. I have been right on with measurements up until this point. It must not be TOO much of an "emergency" since he scheduled the ultrasound for August 15th.  Right now all I can do is wait!

Trip to Chicago...a Quick Update

This will be just a quick little post. Chad and I traveled to Chicago this weekend (a last-minute decision!) to visit his sister Jessica and also to see the downtown area. We got to go to the skydeck at the Willis Tower (it was quite a long line but worth the wait!). I didn't realize that the "Sears Tower" and the "Willis Tower" were one in the same...it will always be the Sears Tower to me! We also saw "the bean" at Millenium Park and went to the Navy Pier. We ate at Harry Caray's on the pier and The Cheesecake Factory and stayed at the Weston. There was so much more that we wanted to do but we just didn't have the time. As we were saying our goodbyes, Jessica's boyfriend Eric commented that next time we see them we will probably have a kid. Crazy to think about yet it is a very distinct possibility!

Summer Heat!

     Well it is the middle of July and it is HOT!! It officially hit 99 degrees (might as well make it an even 100!) and I am miserable! Even for the short amounts of time that I am outside, I am having a hard time handling it. I am amazed at how pregnancy can affect me SO much when it comes to the weather! Hopefully it will start to cool down soon here (and maybe we'll even be so lucky to get a little rain!)
     We had a fantastic 4th of July. Chad's parents, Paul and Denise, his sister, Jessica and her boyfriend, Eric came and visited us for a few days. It was really nice catching up with them.  We toured the Ford plant and went to the Henry Ford Museum one day- it was a very fun time. It was very nice to see them all again. Denise and Paul got to try out our new guest bed as well (since Chad and I recently got a new bedroom set and mattress).  I am sure that the guest bed is going to get a lot of use in the coming months.
     Torque's training is going extremely well- even better than I could have hoped. I NEVER would have guessed that he would have responded so well to training. To be completely honest, I think he is doing the best in the class!  Turns out that training seems to suit Torque just fine!  So far, he has learned "sit", "sit/stay", "leave it" and he has ALMOST mastered "down".  I have learned that I have to be very firm with Torque or else he won't listen to me. In fact, Torque is so proud of himself that he now thinks of himself as a "refined" dog and prefers to be called "Sir Torquelington" (pronounced Torque-wellington)  ;)
     My pregnancy continues to be going well. She (whom we have named "Emily Arlene") certainly moves around a lot- which tells me that she is doing just fine. I have been having a little trouble sleeping, but so far I have contributed that to our new mattress-which may take some time to get used to. Bending down is also becoming a bit of an issue. But I haven't put up that white flag yet! My registry is almost done, but we haven't picked out a crib yet. I am getting excited to go back to Minnesota in August to not only see my family, but to celebrate my parent's 30th anniversary! We will have my baby shower that same day as well- gotta fit it in while we are there! Chad and I are also planning on going to Chicago this weekend to see the sights and also visit his sister. We gotta fit that in before it becomes a bit harder for a simple weekend visit! I am also getting excited for the new Batman movie to come out- you bet that we'll see it this weekend!  Here I am at 28 weeks-I love how concerned Torque looks:

Happy 4th of July!

     Happy Independence Day! I can't believe it is July already- and this week I am 27 weeks along! And the baby is a-kicking up a storm! I am doing my best to stay cool- it has been 90 degrees all week and expected to be almost 100 degrees by Friday...the heat is really getting to me. I am really hoping for some rain soon since it is so dry here. My in-laws are coming for a visit today and staying for a few days. I was planning on bringing them to the riverwalk in Lansing today but it might be too hot for that! We are going to tour the Ford plant tomorrow as well. Torque is very excited to see his grandparents! They have never seen our new apartment so it will be nice to show them around the area.
      As far as the pregnancy, all seems to be going well. I still have an "innie" but my bump is starting to get quite large. My back has started hurting a little bit and I've had to start slowing down at work a little. Thankfully I am able to sit a little bit during my shifts at work.  I am almost finished registering and my goodness do they have cute baby stuff! I registered at Target and Babies R Us. Chad has been able to feel the baby kick a lot, which he thinks is pretty cool.
     Torque and I are enrolled in a dog training class once a week for 6 weeks. We are going to get him in tip-top shape come October. His first class went OK, but he and I have a long ways to go! I really like the trainer, however Torque is not a big fan of him since the trainer started giving me tips on being dominant. :) I think that this training will help Torque be a better dog and be much more comfortable with the baby when she comes.

June!

Well its already nearing the end of June and I thought I'd get everyone caught up on all the facets of our lives.  Chad and I, along with Chad's sister and her boyfriend, and my parents and my sister, went to the Upper Peninsula (UP) of Michigan a few weeks ago. We had a fantastic time. We started out in St. Ignace and camped at a state park with a fantastic view of the Mackinac Bridge. We headed up to Sault Ste Marie and saw the locks and also saw Taquamenon Falls. We then headed over to Munising and went on the Pictured Rocks Tour (Cliffs on Lake Superior that appear to be "painted" because of the different minerals). We ended our UP "tour" near Houghton and stayed there for a few days. We had a fabulous time with near-perfect weather!
Everything seems to be going well with baby. My nausea is nearly non-existent (thanks to an antacid that I started taking!) and my doctor says that everything seems to be checking out fine. Her heartbeat is now around 140-bpm and at my last ultrasound she weighed almost a pound. I have gained the weight back that I lost during the first trimester and then some.
We have decided on purple and teal paisley for the baby's room. I picked out bedding at Babies R Us but when I went back 2 weeks later, it was gone. I looked online too and it was as if it never existed. So I am back to searching for bedding again. I started to register, but it was so overwhelming-there are so many options! I have enlisted the help of my cousin's wife to get me on the right track (thanks Lesa!!) and am very thankful she'll be able to help.

23 Weeks already!

My mom thinks I'm having twins!

Its a.....

I had my 20-week ultrasound yesterday and its a little girl! We did the 3D ultrasound too, although she was very shy and had her arms up next to her face. The ultrasound tech couldn't get a good picture of her face, although we did get some very cute butt shots!! I can't believe that at the last ultrasound, the picture was literally just a "dot" and now it looks like a baby! She weighs 15 ounces right now and my due date is the same, October 4th. The ultrasound tech said that everything looks normal, although I can't believe how skinny she looks! Chad and I are very excited now and my sister Danae says that she will have the best shoes in town! I'm counting on you Danae! I will attempt to post the pictures later, although to be honest, I don't really know how to use the scanner- so we'll see how this goes.

1st Baby Bump Pic: 15 weeks

Easter Update

Not a whole lot to update regarding the pregnancy, but I CAN update about other aspects of my life. First off, I found a new church. Since we moved to Lansing, I knew that something was missing, so I began to search for a new church. I wanted one similar to the one I grew up in: progressive, good music (no opera-style singing with an organ!) and an overall "fun" experience. Well, I am so excited to have found Mount Hope Church. The pastor is absolutely amazing and the music is FANTASTIC! I come home from church each week with a smile on my face and a good outlook on life. Secondly, Chad and I are planning a vacation along with my parents to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan in early June. I am very excited about this considering how gorgeous the U P is! Chad has never been up there, so it will be nice exploring the "upper-half" of our new state. Third, I spent Easter weekend with Chad's sister Jessica and her boyfriend Eric. We went to the Chicago-famous Portillo's on Saturday night- yum! Jessica made turkey, beans, deviled eggs and mashed potatoes for Easter dinner. It was fantastic! Pregnancy-wise, the nausea has slowed down for the most part, which I am grateful for, and my appetite is beginning to get back to normal. Overall, I am excited that it is warming up here (even though we had the mildest winter ever!) and relieved that the nausea might finally stop! (Hey, I can only hope!)

End of 1st Trimester!

I can't believe how fast this pregnancy is going- this week I am 13 weeks, which means the end of the 1st trimester/beginning of 2nd trimester! Hopefully that also means that the morning sickness will be done soon! Since the "lettuce incident" (see post below) I have done a good job at keeping my emotions in-check. The morning sickness is still pretty bad; I have been on Zofran, an anti-nausea medication, for about 6 weeks now. I swear it is a miracle drug! Even with the Zofran, though, I still have a few bad days. I have found that "morning" sickness actually rings true for me; I am sickest in the morning. I have also found that pregnancy nausea is very counter-intuitive- when I am starting to feel nauseous, it is best if I eat something. Peanut butter toast has become my new best friend! Also, thank the lord for jello and crackers!

I had a few pre-natal appointments since my last post. At my last appointment, they took my weight and we realized that I have actually lost weight since I got pregnant. They told me that this is actually quite common since nausea is so dominant in the first few months of pregnancy. They lovingly reassured me that I will gain it all back, and then some! I will post my first "belly" picture later- although there really isn't much to see. I also still need to post the first ultrasound picture.

First Ultrasound/First Public Breakdown

I thought I would share with you a little story regarding how much pregnancy has affected me emotionally. I will share my first ultrasound picture later. The other day, I went on my lunch at work to go to Qdoba. I was planning on picking it up and bringing it back to the pharmacy and I had to order for both my pharmacist and I. This was the first time I had ever been to Qdoba. I told the lady, "I'll have a chicken quesadilla with cheese for myself. On a separate order I would like a chicken taco for my pharmacist." Then, I told her, "and can I have lettuce on the chicken quesadilla?" She told me, "oh I'm sorry. We already put the quesadilla together and it's in the oven." My emotions got the best of me and I immediately started crying. The lady, in complete shock, said "I am so sorry! I can put lettuce on the side if you would like?" Then, to my now utter horror, I told her, "NO! The damage has been done!" I then apologized and told her that I'm pregnant and I don't know what came over me in that moment. I will probably never step foot in the Qdoba again! (as a sidenote, who in their right mind wants lettuce IN a quesadilla? It has to be grilled! Grilled lettuce is gross! Oh, that's right, I WASN'T in my right mind!) This was the first time my emotions truly got the best of me and I hope to keep my emotions "in check" from here on out!!! (If that is even possible!)

The Big News!

Chad and I thought we would start this blog to keep everyone in the loop during our journey of pregnancy and parenthood. Since we live so far from everyone else and our family is spread out all over the country, we thought this would be a good way to keep everyone updated.

So, its true, Chad and I are expecting!!! The baby is due October 4th, 2012. We had our first ultrasound yesterday and the 157-beats-per-minute proves that there is a little guy (or girl) in there!

This pregnancy was by no means a planned one (however, that doesn’t mean that its not a welcome one!) I took a pregnancy test 3 weeks ago and it was positive. Chad was already asleep, so naturally I woke him up and showed him the test. He looked at it and asked, “is this a joke?” After assuring him that this was, in fact, NOT a joke, my loving husband asked, “is it mine?” I assured him that yes, the baby is his! (you gotta love his humor!)

We like my doctor, although he is rather up-front (when I showed him my prenatal gummy vitamins I had picked up at the grocery store, he asked, “why would you take these?!?”) He seems thorough with lots of advice on how to keep the nausea at bay and how to use pregnancy as an excuse to get out of things you don’t want to do!! ;)

So here I am, morning sickness and all, ready to tackle pregnancy head-on. Hope you will join Chad and I as we begin our journey!