16 weeks

My return to regular blogging starts riiiiiight now!  I am going to try to do these weekly pregnancy surveys, along with a photo, to keep everyone who cares apprised of my pregnancy progress. Don't worry, I'll keep the survey as tame as possible, since I know my dad reads this.  :)

First of all, my 16 week photo, taken this last Friday.  Ignore the stupid silly grin on my face.  As I mentioned in the end of my last post, this is what I hope will be the beginning of me having a real bump and actually looking pregnant instead of just like I ate too many cookies.  Don't get me wrong, I think I'll still be at this weird "is-she-pregnant-or-is-she-just-getting-chunky" phase for awhile, as I have a long torso and will probably not "pop" for another month or two.  But a girl can dream...

How far along? 16 weeks, 3 days


Maternity clothes? Not yet.  Luckily, I'm still fitting into most of my regular clothes (however I have to wear my Bella Band with some of my pants)

Stretch marks? No, trying to avoid those like the plague by moisturizing twice a day

Sleep: I'm a stomach sleeper, so adjusting to sleeping on my side has been a challenge.  Between trying to get comfortable and having to get up to use the restroom, I wake up every hour or two.

Best moment this week: Realizing that I'm actually getting a hard bump!

Movement: Nothing yet...

Food cravings: Donuts, berries, popcorn (all things I enjoyed before I got pregnant as well)

Gender: ???

Labor Signs: No way!

Belly Button in or out? In.  I have a feeling it'll stay that way for quite awhile.  I have a deep belly button!

Wedding rings on or off? Still on.  No bloating in my hands at all yet. 

What I miss: a glass of red wine every so often.  And sleeping for more than 2 hours at a time and on my stomach.

What I am looking forward to: Feeling some movement in there.  (Hello baby, are you in there??)

Milestones: Nothing major this week.  I think the biggest milestones so far have been seeing the baby for the first time, and making it through the first trimester with a healthy baby.  :)



Progress so far...it's a loooooong one!

Have you recovered from the shock of the news you just read yet???  I hope so.  We are incredibly anxious/nervous/terrified/mostly excited about what the future holds for the Groff family.  The last few months have been such a pleasant reminder to us about what a solid group of loving and supportive people we have in our lives, and we hope you all know how much we've appreciated your kind words.

This post will mark the beginning of more regular posting about what's going on with us, as there are BIG changes taking place on an almost daily basis.  I know there are a few of you who have been asking about the blog and wanting to see belly pictures, hence the return to regular posting (I considered posting all of this on Facebook, but once I realized that 350 of my "closest" friends would be able to see belly shots, that idea went out the window in about .02 seconds).  I held off posting anything for the first few months or so for a few reasons: we were still erring on the side of caution and honestly, kind of enjoying this little secret that only our families and closest friends know and also because I spent about 3 weeks feeling like I was knocking on death's door.  Those pregnancy hormones are no joke.  It was all I could do to drag my tired, sick butt to work, much less focus my time on anything extra that was not absolutely mandatory.  Plus, pictures at that time would have been pointless, as there were no outwardly apparent changes to see, and I'd rather not have physical evidence of how haggard early pregnancy made me look. 

I chose to begin taking pictures around 8 weeks, since that's when I turned the corner and started feeling human again.  So my 8 week photos will serve as my "baseline" for the rest of my pregnancy.  I've only done monthly photos the last few months, because progress has been slow (at least from the outside).  The first few shots will probably be the only bare belly ones I post on here, because starting around 16 weeks, the progression can be seen with my clothes on. 

Here's my 8 week shot.  Still looking a little green around the gills, but slowly starting to feel better.

Our first peek at Baby G, whom Pat and I affectionately call "Squirmy" because of how active he or she is already (this scan was done at about 10.5 weeks).  The doctor had a hard time getting decent photos because baby was moving so much.  But we didn't mind one bit.  That moment of seeing our baby for the first time was surreal.  Indescribable.  Best feeling ever.   

This is what I looked like around 12/13 weeks.  I had to document this momentous occasion, as I thought this would be the beginning of my bump.  But alas, I was wrong.  This gut represented what can happen when you consume about a week's worth of sodium in one day (I had just gotten my appetite back, ok?).  Good thing I was headed to yoga right after I took this pic. 

And this is what baby looked like at 12 weeks.  Reading ultrasound photos is like reading a map of a place you've never been.  Unless you know exactly what landmarks you're looking for, it's a complete puzzle (or in this case, a mass of blobs in differing shades of black, white, and gray).  Luckily my husband is a bit more of an analytic thinker than myself, and could help me decipher what these pictures were.  In the left photos, the top picture is a profile of the baby's head.  The middle one is baby with its hand up to its mouth (baby was sucking on his/her thumb almost the entire time!).  And then the bottom picture, as the label would indicate, is an arm (thank you, ultrasound tech!).  The picture on the right is my absolute favorite picture, and the first one I've shown to family and friends because I just think it's so dang cute.  Yes, friends, that thing you see protruding from the baby's mouth is, in fact, its tongue.  So much personality already!

It's hard to tell in this picture, taken at 15 weeks, but this bump is the real deal (not all squishy gut like the last one).  I was so excited about this perfect little round, hard mass, that I ran to the mirror as soon as I got up and tried to document the difference, but it's just too hard to capture it with a photo.  So you'll have to take my word for it.  ;)

Ok, phew, so now we're all caught up.  That was the first trimester...and then some.  (I only wish it was that easy and painless for me!).  This is where things start getting better, or so I hear... 



I'm Baaaack...with some BIG news!!!!

Hey everyone!
I'm not sure who even reads this anymore, as the blog has gone ignored for so long.  But I promise I have a good excuse for why I've neglected the blog. 

Are you ready for this???

Wait for it...

...

...

...

Baby Groff will be making his or her debut in August 2012!!!!

Pics and posts about pregnancy progress to come. 
(**To anyone who's not interested in reading about my pregnancy for the next 5ish months, this would be a good time to exit the blog). 

Stay tuned!



Summer Reads

I love summer.  Not because of the sunshine, the nice weather, or being able to spend time at the pool (because honestly, living in California, I can enjoy all of those things for about 9 months out of the year).  I love summer time because summer is when I get to spend hours upon hours curled up on the couch, A/C cranked, with a good book.  And this summer, unlike last summer, there is no boring textbook or class reading assignment calling my name.  This is strictly pleasure reading, and I love it.  Here's a few of the books on my summer reading list:

I read Water for Elephants en route to Jamaica, and on the beach.  :)  This book was awesome.  My only complaint is that now I won't be able to see the movie (I have a personal rule about not seeing movies that were adapted from books I've read; my general consensus is that the movie can NEVER compare).  But that's alright, I don't care much for that Twilight actor anyway. 

I received this book from a coworker as a thank you for some work I did last school year.  This is a good book to have sitting on your coffee table to pick up and flip open on those days when you feel like nothing is going right.  It's full of short chapters (sometimes only a sentence but up to a few pages), of things that are, well, awesome.  The author even has a blog that is updated daily with awesome things.  [Burps that taste good really are awesome!!!]

Onto a more serious note.  The Invitation was a gift from a friend, mentor, and fellow social worker.  If you're into spiritual self-help books along the lines of The Four Agreements and The Secret, you will love this book.  This is one of those books in which I've flagged several pages, to re-read and refer to in the future.  Here's one of my favorite excerpts:

It doesn't interest me where or what or with whom you have studied.

I want to know what sustains you from the inside
when all else falls away.
I want to know if you can be alone with yourself
and if you truly like the company you keep
in the empty moments.

And speaking of The Four Agreements, this book was also a gift from a colleague.  I haven't started this one yet, because the student in me feels the need to go back and review The Four Agreements before I move onto The Fifth Agreement. 

I keep hearing rave reviews about this book, but I'm waiting to borrow it from a coworker.  I can't wait to start reading it! 

And of course, I have to have a few junkie memoirs thrown in (I'm a junkie memoir junkie, ha!).  Fall to Pieces was written by the now ex-wife of Scott Weiland, of the Stone Temple Pilots.  Very interesting read about an average girl who gets caught up in the crazy rock n' roll lifestyle. 

And on the opposite end of the spectrum, Russell Brand's Booky Wook.  One word: boring.  Maybe it's just because I don't understand British humor, but when I finished reading this book, I felt like I must be stupid, because surely I should be able to see the humor in the stories he told (or at the very least understand what the hell he was talking about).  I'm grateful I bought this book used, but a little sad that I will never see that $7 again. 

Since I only have two books left on my list to read, and it's only mid-summer, I would welcome suggestions from my fellow bookworms.  What are you reading???



BABIESSSSS!!!!

Yes, the title of this post does deserve all caps.  Why?  Because my oldest friend, Jonna, was blessed with 2 beautiful twin girls on June 6th!  We were fortunate enough to spend an entire afternoon cuddling these beautiful babes (Pat even held one!).  They were only about 3 weeks old at the time, and were tiny, fragile, and absolutely gorgeous!  So without further ado, I present to you, Presley and Elyse!

Look at that face!!!

 What a little sweetheart! 

 Sleeping soundly. 

Doing double-time.  Easy peasy (when they're both asleep, haha!)

I think I'm in love....



Playing Catch {Up}

June was such a whirlwind month.  We spent the first two weeks of the month traveling to Montana and then Jamaica, squeezed in a baseball game in Oakland, and wrapped up the month by cuddling two brand new baby girls (more on that in the next post). We were literally out of town every single weekend.  Which is probably why I woke up this morning and thought, "Where did this month go???  How can it possibly be July already?!?!" 

We were invited by some good friends to a huge rivalry game between the Giants and the A's in Oakland. I absolutely LOVE watching baseball, because it seems to be the only sport that I fully understand (surprising given I've grown up with 3 brothers who are all sports fanatics). So even though Pat's a Red Sox fan through and through, we decided it would be fun to go watch the two bay-area teams battle it out. We made sure to arrive a few hours early, to give ourselves time to tailgate and save some money on $6 hotdogs and $9 beers. And we both made sure to wear neutral colors, as we determined before leaving the house that since our group would consist of both A's fans and Giants fans, Pat and I would be playing the role of neutral Switzerland for the day.

Supposedly because I brought champagne to tailgate (it was leftover from graduation), I'm a Giants fan.  I maintain my neutral stance.

My photographic skills went by the wayside once we actually got into the game (I may have slightly over-indulged in the aforementioned champagne).  But as you can see, I was in good company.  :)

Oh, and for all of you that care, the A's won, which was none too pleasing for the Giants fans.  I was neither excited nor upset by the outcome of the game.  However, fun was had by all. 

A Caribbean Dream

Ahhh Jamaica.  We fell in love with the island when we went there for our honeymoon a few years ago.  We vowed then that we would return at some point.  And what better time than for our 3rd anniversary, as a celebration of 3 years of wedded bliss (no easy feat given the major obstacles we've had to overcome in 3 short years).  Here are a few pics of our vacation adventures.  Most of the 6 days were spent lounging on the beach or in the pool, drink in hand.  We did, however, spend one day ziplining through the rain forest.  Unfortunately, that's the only day of our trip that was not documented with my camera, as I was a bit busy wetting myself (not literally, but my mind was preoccupied with other things, such as being scared as hell and visualizing both cables snapping and me falling 300 ft to my untimely death).  Enjoy the photos!  

Now onto planning our next adventure.  The wheels are already turning...