Today is our 36/37 week appointment at my doctors. We are getting tested for group b strep along with checking out the baby's size and position. Hopefully, I will be coming along.
We had a great weekend this past weekend. The girls and I went to the Beauty and the Beast play at my old high school with my mom and Molly and Georgia. Molly and our friend Lisa got us last minute tickets after not realizing that we had to pre-purchase them. The play was very well done and the sets were a lot more intricate than when I was in Seven Brides for Seven Brothers. Both my sister and I were "stolen" by the mountain brothers. Brandon got to get a 40-mile bike ride while we were there.
It was also nice to get a new iPhone replacement (really?) after my prego belly did not illicit compassion from the Apple salesman. He gave my poor broken phone one look and said, "it will probably be $XX."
Did not have my friend Jess's luck with getting a new iPhone for free. Boo.
Or the little boy who almost caught the foul ball at a Texas Rangers game. His mom said it was a good lesson for him because "sometimes you don't get what you want."
I did run 4 miles at the gym on Saturday and felt amazing. Brandon watched the girls and I had a nice day to myself working out, shopping for baby Ryder and getting a phone.
Beauty and the Beast with mom, Sophia, Georgia and Ava (she didn't want a pic).
Popcorn during intermission
Brandon took the girls to the park this Saturday. Soph wanted to tame the dinosaur.
Ava's preschool class pet, Rajah, was with her for this week. We took a picture by our "V" curtain at church.
Soph and Ava at the park post-appt.
I call my sis the coupon queen. She loves cutting out coupons.
The weekend is almost here and it's sunny and bright outside. We are going to be relaxing around the house this weekend and getting in fam time around the house.
Today we visited COSI and then hit up Jeni's - which is so yum. I got the salty carmel and dark chocolate, Ava got dark chocolate and Soph got wild berry lavender. The ice cream hit the spot! Ava and Soph really enjoyed the water exhibit that had fog coming down with words.
baby baby
Last night I packed our hospital bags for the baby and cleaned up the basement. Those little newborn onesies are so little. It's so hard to imagine little Ryder in them. And GG made us an amazing fried chicken dinner that was so good as a pre-baby meal. The homemade gravy was heavenly as was the apple crisp with vanilla ice cream. So sweet of her!
It's been a cray cray week/weeks at the Shmidt House. We have had baby showers, family get togethers, parties, zoo days, play dates, girl's nights, cleaning galore.
Brandon's parents came this weekend and we had a great time visiting with them. The girls were in hog heaven swimming and getting some Momma Shmidt and Poppa Shmidt time. Ava even went to check out the window on Sunday afternoon after they had left because she wanted to make sure they had really left. They loved having them visit. I will post some fun pics later this week. Thanks to Mindy and Shearon for creating such a great family time!
And I love these pictures from Ava's preschool where they had cowgirl/cowboy days. Ava wore her red hat and red cowboy boots from Colorado.
Running is still going great. I do get the question of "when are you going to quit running" or "how do you run while pregnant?" a lot. Hmm. Here is what I have found.
Lower expectations on mileage and pace and enjoy just getting outside or on the treadmill
Bring lots of water and eat a light snack before you run because you go through calories so fast (sometimes I will eat hard candy while running
If you can say your address while your running, your pace is fine. Some medical reports (and please check with your dr) say to stay under 140, but I feel fine around 155 or 160.
Celebrate each run as a victory and don't look too far down the road wondering if you will be able to continue - be thankful for each time you are able to get in a great workout
Now is a great time to tweak a sport based on correct form or technique (ie. swim). Swimming is one sport that I enjoy and learning correct form has been great way to not get frustrated with my slower running speed. Before I was able to run a mile on my speed days around 7:15 or so and now on a good day it's around 10:40. And that's after warming up. Just like with any injury or delay, long term thinking is always best. :)
OJ and grapefruit slushies. Mmm!
I have been loving making these cute little grapefruit and oj slushies. My mom and our family used to make the oj slushies with little sugar and fruit and they are so refreshing later in the afternoon.
Grapefruit or oj slushies
Juice+little sugar+add berries, grapes, bananas, or pineapple and freeze for 2-3 hours until just slushy.
mmm! The cold slushy juice + berries are so refreshing and help my fruit craving which is out of control.
Baby time.
What could be better than a blog that features vintage dresses and a prego belly?
36 Week Update
Cravings: Fruit! Fruit! Fruit! And avocados. Made some yum guac this week. Also craving salty chips.
Weight: Hmm. Maybe 22.5 or 23 pounds.
Baby items: Tons of beautiful and useful things from our shower and friends - cute little owl hat, diapers, wipes, outfits and swing from Brandon's parents, baby towel, lotions and pacis, basket, etc. So sweet. Thank you all!
Nursery changes: Brandon washed out the infant seat and we got the pack n play in our closet for baby. Also going through the girls' old clothes to send to Lydia and my old clothes. And organizing maternity clothes to give back after baby since some of the items were winter clothes.
Body changes: Hormones. Those dang hormones that have me laughing or crying at the drop of a hat. I think the progesterone kicks into full force these last weeks and makes for some lovely pregnancy times. My hips are def. spreading and restless leg syndrome at night sometimes hits as well as insomnia. Feel pretty awesome in the morning and toward lunchtime. Still little nauseous and ready for baby. After this week we could deliver anytime. Holy moly.
If you haven't seen this "Pregnant and I Know It" Youtube video - watch- it's hilarious. It was a parody version of the "Sexy and I Know It" song written by a Christian recording artist and performed by his wife. They uploaded it to Youtube and it has more than 1 million hits in just 2.5 weeks!
Smoothie time
This was our favorite smoothie of the week!
Almonds + vanilla + frozen strawberries + banana + milk + Stonyfield yogurt + chocolate chips = so good! The almonds help you stay full longer and the girls can't taste them. They loved putting little chips (smaller size) on the tops of their smoothies.
This is what happens when your 3-year old decides her barbies need a hair cut and your in the shower. And then she precedes to give herself "bangs." She actually did a very good job on her bangs or "bongs" as Ava calls them.
Snuggling with daddy on a Saturday morning (our lounge day) and Soph showing off her bangs.
Egg dying. Ava was really excited to dye her eggs.
After a lesson, Sophia was really good and didn't plop them in. Pretty much all of our eggs turned out to be pink.
Ava said her favorite fruit was starfruit (Olivia) so we picked up one at the store. I literally had to watch a Youtube video on how to cut and eat them. It was a nice correlation for Easter since we also watched an Easter video. We said Jesus was the star.
We had a great Easter celebration last weekend. On Saturday Brandon did a long run and while he was out the girls dyed Easter eggs. Then we watched an Easter video and I tried to explain Easter to them and read them a book that evening on Easter. It's a hard concept for little kids to grasp because they think Jesus died that night, not 2,000-plus years ago.
We had a bday party for a friend and a great time and I got to get a swim in at the Rec Center. I was dreading the swim on Saturday before I got there and ended up having a really great swim. I did maybe 1300 yards and did sets of drills that I had from Tracy.
On Sunday we had early church so I made coffee cake the night before and then just cooked it in the morning (good idea for busy days!) We also got the girls dressed and had them find their hidden Easter baskets outside. Their favorite item in the basket was their zoobles that talked. My sis Rachel had gotten Ava zoobles for her bday and the girls love to play with these things!
Brandon's family always had their Easter basket on their table for breakfast. It's so cool how every family has different traditions.
After church at Vista Worthington, we headed to Momma and Poppa Kuhns to relax and finish food to take to our Aunt Rita and Nick's house. We had a great time there eating too much food and playing dutch blitz. My sis Rebecca is on a roll! She is getting really good.
We also honored my grandpa who had his 85th birthday celebration.
Devos - As I have progressed in pregnancy, my ample brain cells that were once alive and kicking seem to be...dying off. Just yesterday I put a check mailed to us in the trash. Sadly, Brandon knew where to look first -- the recycling bin. I have almost missed bday parties and I sometimes have that perfect word on the tip of my tongue, but can't remember it for the life of me.
On Bones the other night, Bones, who is pregnant, said pregnancy can make your IQ 8-10 points lower. I have to agree. And it's frustrating.
Sitting in church has been a way to meet the Lord and to worship with others (Heb 10:25), but another one of my favorite ways to really have my devotionals has been to walk or to run outside.
On those days that are way tough, just walking or running and being in God's creation brings peace to my heart.
He meets me there. Or...maybe I just make space for Him because really He is always there. It's not a formal setting. I don't have my best clothes on -- in fact, I am covered in sweat usually. And that's fine by Him.
Perfect mom thoughts? Replaced with leaning on Him. Tough budget crisis or rough day with kids? Replaced with peace. Whoa is me epitaphs? Replaced with comfort and rest.
God met David as he walked in the evening and from there they had a kindred relationship. They talked and David marveled at the Lord's majestic creation.
"O LORD, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory above the heavens." (8:1)
In the verse above, majestic means "far superior to anything else." He noted that God's creation was superior above any man-made object while he was in the middle of His creation.
Brother Lawrence, a 16th century priest who heard God in the daily happenings of life, writes about meeting God in the little places in our lives in "Practice of the Presence of God."
“A little lifting up of the heart suffices; a little remembrance of God, an interior act of adoration, even though made on the march and with sword in hand, are prayers which, short though they may be, are nevertheless very pleasing to God, and far from making a soldier lose his courage on the most dangerous occasions, bolster it. Let him then think of God as much as possible so that he will gradually become accustomed to this little but holy exercise; no one will notice it and nothing is easier than to repeat often during the day these little acts of interior adoration.” ―Brother Lawrence,Practice of the Presence of God
I got to visit my sister last fall in Denver (running and tri heaven) and run in the beautiful city of Golden with a running club called the Runner's Edge of the Rockies. Colorado and places like Golden and Boulder have a lot of triathletes due to the terrain for training and altitude. And because it's pretty much one of the most beautiful places to live. Blah. Jessie - no fair. :)
Of course they have Jamba Juice. It's heaven. Why wouldn't they? Jamba Juice with cutie Jessie, who got the much better smoothie.
Post long-run ice baths in mountain streams? You mean you slum it in your bathtub?
The running club shared a link to the interview on a daily news show that featured the triathlete who "Lanced" Lance Armstrong in the final seconds of Ironman Texas 70.3.
Ironman Texas 70.3
I can imagine Lance will never let this happen again. Or any elite for that matter --thinking he was in sixth place he was almost to the finish line when he was passed in the final moments. Ouch.
Have you ever raced to the finish line and passed someone? I always run as fast as I can because I just want it to be OVER in any race. I don't hear people shouting or see anyone cheering unless I am running pregnant. :)
During my training runs, I will race the last .30 yards or so and try to get a certain number on my garmin (6-minute miles or so). When I hit six I let myself stop.
Do you have any training things you do? Have you ever got "Lanced"?
It's raining right now and the ducks are outside waddling and swimming down mill valley creek. Seems they aren't the only ones waddling right now -- I am too.
Prego waddle
The 'waddle walk' started slowly and is now in full force as I have to manage around my belly. This baby is taking lots of room and even having the girls in my lap is getting more difficult. When I bend down to get something, I have to get the wide stance as I bend down. Getting out of the pool is more hard and takes a good ooopmh.
Last night I had a great walk around our walking trail - little more than 3 miles--and it was gorgeous outside. Brandon and I took the girls on a bike ride for about a mile and they loved it. I also ran a 3-mile trail run on Sunday afternoon at Prairie Oaks Park. It's a hilly park that has pretty trails. The uphills were hard but fun.
Brandon did an 8-miler (so jealous) and a long bike ride this weekend. So nice to have a free Saturday to relax and enjoy the day. We laid around and the girls and I sat in bed and read and watched movies #awesomefreeday.
Also, here's a link to last year's post on dying Easter eggs and making hard-boiled eggs if you are interested. Every year for Easter we dye eggs, color pictures about Jesus and Easter and try to tell the girls the story behind Easter. We also have them find their Easter basket on Sunday morning.
What are some Easter traditions you all have with your family?
Rain on our tulips - it's been switching between raining and sunshine days - everything is really green.
Ava thinks her dad is "cute and likes to read books"
Ava picked out Brandon's outfit for Father's Night at her preschool
Ava with her class singing their rendition of "Five Little Ducks"
Ice cream is always on the schedule when your with daddy.
Ava's preschool class had Father's Night last March. I had to laugh when they scheduled it for the first night of March Madness - a sacred night in our house dedicated solely to watching as many games as you can. But, Brandon said he had a great time and their class was so cute.
They filled out a questionnaire about their dad, made cards and ties and then finished with a song. Ava was so excited to pick out Brandon's outfit for the night - "an orange shirt and jeans."
Afterwards they went to DQ and enjoyed some ice cream. Brandon is such a great dad and he had such great night with Ava.
One of Brandon's favorite things to eat is this cauliflower gratin that I made one night when I had to use up the rest of the cauliflower. It's a pretty basic gratin recipe with the white veggie instead of potatoes. It's a great idea for something different for Easter.
Cauliflower Gratin
Preheat oven to bake 400
Wash and prep cauliflower
Slice into thin strips
Butter shallow and wide pan
Add veggies and salt and pepper
Add on top heavy whipping cream
Sprinkle your cheese (gruyere or another strong melting cheese)
toast panko bread crumbs with some butter in pan and add to top
Bake on sheet pan until bubbly and golden brown and veggies are tender
