Every 4 Years

Summer 2002 - Matt and I met through one of my college roomates Alycia

June 20, 2003 - Matt and I officially started dating

(Just thought I would throw this picture in because it is funny. Chili Cookoff 2003)

October 2003 - We added our first "baby" Chance to the mix

March 2007 - We added our second "baby" Luke to the family

(I couldn't find a baby picture of him)

May 27, 2007 - Matt and I married in the Dominican Republic

November 2011 - We are adding our third "baby" Reed to the family

(Me and my three baby boys cuddled up)

Looks like we have a pattern of expanding the family every four years...

Belly Business - 38 Weeks

Baby Reed could be here any day now! I cannot believe that his due date is just 14 days away. Matt and I are both ready for him to make his grand appearance and hold him in our arms.

Doctors Visit Update: While we are ready for Reed, he doesn’t seem quite ready for us. My doctor said he has dropped a little bit since last week, but not much. She could easily feel his head so he is in the right position. I am not dilated at all. She said that if she was a betting woman she would bet that he is going to wait until his due date or later. I gained a pound and a half since last week putting the total weight gain at 27 lbs.

Baby Showers: I haven’t had the time to post on here about my showers, but have put most of the pictures on Facebook (plus most of those reading this blog attended them). I had two amazing showers in Texas and feel so blessed to be surrounded by so many friends and family even if they are nearly 1,800 miles away. This past weekend, my girlfriends in Boston threw me my last shower. They all pitched in to make it an incredible afternoon. They even had Reed Hot Sauce and custom cigars for the gift bags!

Belly Shots: I have been taking week by week pictures for the blog of my growing belly, but I really wanted to get one or two good bare belly shots for Reed’s baby book. So last night, I hung a black wrap dress up as a back drop and had Matt take a couple pictures. What do you think?

Daddy & Reed:

Nanny Update: We hired a Nanny today! If you remember, a couple months back I blogged about our childcare options here in the city. We are doing a nanny share with another family that lives right down the road. Essentially, we hired a nanny that will watch both of our babies together and the cost is split between both families. Anne (the other mother) had her little girl, Elizabeth, nearly 7 weeks ago and is going back to work at the same time as me. Anne and I started looking for a nanny at the beginning of the month through Sittercity.com. First we visually screened the applicants, then phone interviewed about half a dozen and finally met live with our favorite three.

We decided to go with Ann (the nanny) because she has an Associates in Early Childhood Education and a Bachelors in Human Development. She knew more than Anne or I put together on developmental stages and what activities are best for what ages. She is more than just a babysitter, but eager to help Reed and Elizabeth grow and develop over the next couple years. On Monday we sent over the employment contract and she accepted this morning! It is a huge weight off my shoulders and I am so excited that we found such a great fit for both of our families.

All that being said, Reed we are ready for you whenever you are ready for us!

(Today before heading out in the rain)

Belly Business - 37 Weeks

We are officially Full Term! Reed could be here any day and as far as I am concerned, the sooner the better :) By the way, today is our original due date. If you remember back to our pregnancy announcement, at our 10 week visit they pushed the due date back nearly three weeks.

How far along: 37 weeks

Size of the baby: My prediction is he will be right around 8 lbs and 20 plus inches long

Total weight gain/loss: I didn't gain any weight this week, yeah! Still at 25lbs total weight gain. I definitely think I will stay under my goal of 30 total lbs.

Symptoms: It is getting harder and harder to walk. After about five minutes of walking Reed starts pushing down on my bladder and it becomes a little uncomfortable. Swelling in my ankles and feet. Heartburn at night. My back is still bothering me. I am very excited about a pre-natal massage tomorrow that I hope will help. Other than that I can't complain. I sleep like a baby through the night, so that is good.

Movement: He is one active baby, and I love it. Even if it gets a little uncomfortable, it is nice to know he is there and ready to meet us. I can't tell what is a hand vs. foot but find it is crazy that he can be poking out in different directions so far apart from each other. How it all fits in my belly I don't know.

Name: Reed Stewart Tuel

Due Date Prediction: Still hoping for a week early. This Tuesday at my 37 week appointment didn't confirm that though. Reed is still high and doesn't seem to be eager to meet the rest of us. My 38 week appointment is Monday, so fingers crossed there will be progress!

I'll take a better picture next week. This is from this past Saturday in Littleton, NH.

Reed's Room

The nursery is finally done and ready for baby Reeds arrival which is right around the corner!! Keep in mind that this is also our guest bedroom when we have visitors. Hence the pull out couch. We also made due with what we already had, so I won't have a glider but a reclining chair. The glass doors go out onto a mini second floor patio (more like a fire escape) in the back that overlooks our garden.

The only thing left that I would like (but do not need) is the rug that matches the bedding. However, pottery barn kids rugs are expensive! I'm holding off, but I have a feeling it might end up in an online shopping bag very soon.

Crib Bedding

Pictures I made to match the bedding



From the doorway

Belly Business - 36 Weeks

How far along: 36 weeks

Size of the baby: The doctors keep saying he is measuring long and lean. Although I don't know how they would know that considering I haven't had an ultrasound since 30 weeks and all they do every week is measure my belly from the outside. According to the app on my phone he is the size of a Crenshaw Melon? Weighing almost 6 lbs. and 18.5" long.

Total weight gain/loss: I have gained only 1 lb. since my last doctor’s visit at 34 weeks! So I am sitting at 25 lbs. even weight gain. I am hoping to keep the weight under 30lbs, but feel like it is kind of out of my control at this point.

Cravings: Nothing in particular

Symptoms: My legs and feet are continuing to swell on a daily basis. Not good considering the only pair of maternity pants I have are more like leggings and are becoming increasingly difficult to pull on and off. I really don't want to buy a new pair though. I'm going to have to figure something out.

Movement: He is still moving like crazy. I love the movement, but as Reed gets bigger so do the movements and he often catches me off guard making me increasingly uncomfortable.

Name: Reed Stewart Tuel

Due Date Prediction: I was really hoping I might get an inclination at this week’s appointment. However, I was informed that my doctor won't do a vaginal exam until I am full term. She doesn't want to cause any unnecessary bleeding or encourage the baby to come earlier than needed. I completely agree, but I am just so anxious! I won't have to wait long though. I will be full term in just a few days!! Next Doctors appointment is Tuesday, so hopefully I will have more details then.

Cabin Fever

We finally closed!!

Matt and I moved to Boston exactly two years ago in October. I can’t believe how fast the time has gone by. There are so many advantages to living in New England and one of our favorites has become escaping to New Hampshire. New Hampshire offers everything an outdoorsman would love: lakes, rivers, mountains, snow skiing, hiking, canoeing, camping, fishing, “leaf peeping” in the fall, etc. As soon as you leave the city and cross the border you feel the tranquility take over and forget everything else.

Being the real estate junkie that I am, I immediately started looking into mountain land and properties. Long story short, as of October 3^rd, our dreams became reality and we closed on a log cabin set at the foothills of the White Mountains in New Hampshire.

Even better, we managed to purchase the majority of the furniture from the sellers for only $1,200. All we had to do was add linens, kitchen supplies and replace the living room couches. There are a couple more large scale projects we would like to do down the road (finish out the basement, landscape, add to the front porch, etc), but for now it is our home away from home.

Matt had Columbus Day off yesterday, so we headed to the cabin for our first three day weekend. It was the most relaxed either of us have been in a long time. The property is so secluded and quiet and you are surrounded by the most beautiful nature. We even ran into our first moose on a hike yesterday. Matt almost had a heart attack and made us turn around. I wanted to follow him so I could get a picture (no such luck). One of our new neighbors Dennis also stopped by and showed us a few pictures of Larry – a black bear that frequents his yard. I can’t wait until we get a peek at him.

Open invite: One of the things that pushed us over the edge to go ahead and buy is now that we are expanding our family we won’t be taking as many big vacations. Other than trips home to see family, this will be our permanent vacation spot. We would love to have visitors! Just pick a season and let us know if/when you would like to come out and see us.

·         Winter: Ski season usually starts around Thanksgiving and lasts through April. The cabin is 10 minutes from Bretton Woods and Cannon ski resorts and just a few more miles from many others.

·         Spring: Late March through May is the best time in Boston! Everyone is excited that winter is over and the city is alive. Plus it is the start to baseball season if you haven’t made it to a Red Sox game. The cabin however, will probably still have snow on the ground.

·         Summer: June through Labor Day you get the best of everything. The city is jumping, beaches are close by or you can head up to the mountains for hiking, fishing and floating (by canoe) the rivers.

·         Fall: Labor Day through Thanksgiving. The mountains this time of year are beautiful and a rainbow of colors. It is also fun to get in the holiday spirit by visiting an apple orchard and pumpkin patch or making a trip to Salem to get spooked out for Halloween.  

Anyway, here are just a few (a lot) pictures of the new place:

Apple Picking - I came home and made fresh Apple Cobbler, Pumpkin Bread from fresh pumpkins, Apple stuffed pork chops and washed it down with some fresh Apple Cider.

Out side patio (after Matt spray painted the chairs - I wasn't allowed to be near the fumes, I hung the lanterns and we added the chiminea)

Kitchen:

Dining Room:

Master:

Master Bath:

Guest Bath:

Guest Bedroom 1:

Guest Bedroom 2:

Living Room (with the Tigers/Rangers game on):

A couple pictures from the outside:

Football Lessons

Matt and I have been so busy over the last couple weeks that we really haven’t had a chance to sit down together and watch a Texas Tech football game this season. This Saturday with nothing on the to do list we were ready to watch our Red Raiders take on the Texas A&M Aggies for one last time at Jones SBC Stadium.

It was a tough game to watch as we battled it out only to come up short, but the four hours spent on the couch did teach me a couple lessons:

1.       The rest of this season might just put me into early labor. I love college football, and can’t handle the pressure of such an intense game pregnant. Poor Reed could feel my anxiety and was only adding to it as he hooped and hollered at the TV with me.

2.       I need to start watching my language. Especially when I get heated or passionate about something I don’t always say the most lady like things. I was screaming at the TV and appalled at what was coming out of my mouth. I made a strong effort the second half of the game to use different words, but I have a long way to go.

3.       Not that it came as a surprise, but Matt and I are going to have very different opinions on how to raise little Reed. During the second half of the game, the commentators started talking about the “vandalism” of the A&M busses. My response – “What is wrong with people. We make ourselves look bad. Why can’t we just let our actions on the field be enough?” Matt responded by saying – “I don’t mind. What do you expect? If I saw an Aggie bus, I would probably do the same thing.” I couldn’t help but smile at his response as it confirmed that we sometimes approach things from completely different angles and it is going to get interesting. Do you watch Modern Family? That is us - I am Claire and Matt is Phil.

I can’t wait until our little nugget is here so that he can dress up with us to watch the end of this year’s season. He should be here in just a few short weeks and it is all becoming so real. I feel like I am ready to be a mom, but still have so many flaws. Am I really ready? Guess there is no turning back now. That is half the fun of parenthood, right?

Belly Business - 35 Weeks

How far along: 35 weeks

Size of the baby: Honeydew Melon– approximately 18 inches long and 5 ¼ lbs – although Reed is measuring big, so we will see.

Total weight gain/loss: At my 32 week visit I had only gained 1.5 lbs since my 30 week visit which I felt really good about. Unfortunately I gained 4 lbs between the 32 and 34 week visits. I blame that on my visit to Texas which was filled with fast food and Mexican J all well worth it! So as of last Thursday I have gained a total of 24lbs.

Maternity Clothes: I finally purchased a couple of dresses while down in Texas this past weekend, and the most amazing accessory, a pair of maternity spanks! Thank you to the miracle garment for making the dress I wore to the wedding possible.

Cravings: Nothing in particular

Symptoms: Over the last couple weeks my feet and ankles have definitely started to swell. I’ve also noticed it is a little harder to breath and speak at length – making for some interesting client meetings. Other than that, the back pains and heartburn continue. I haven’t really done anything about the heartburn, but the heating pad has become my back’s best friend!

Movement: Constantly! While he doesn’t have much room in there, he makes the most of it and I don’t know that he ever rests. I hear that babies that are active in the womb are generally calm outside. I hope that wives tale is true.

Name: Reed Stewart Tuel

Due Date Prediction: I’m adding a new field this week. The doctors have given me no indication that Reed is coming earlier or later than his due date of November 9^th. However, I have a gut feeling he is going to make an early appearance. Out of my mom (three girls), my older sister (two boys and one girl) and my little sister (one boy) no one has carried full term. So if genetics play into it at all I’m guessing he comes a week early.

I haven’t posted in a while, so here are some belly pics to catch everyone up!

30 Weeks in Galveston

31 Weeks

32 Weeks in Nantucket (I thought I took a belly shot, but they are all straight on)

33 Weeks in Dallas (with the spanks on)

34 Weeks at the cabin in New Hampshire