Bumps, Bruises, Toddler Forks & 29 Weeks

Natalie has started to really run around now and she’s started to get little bumps and bruises galore! She trips and slips a lot on the hardwood floors and falls into things a lot. Her knees seem to constantly have little bruises on them! Luckily it’s nothing too bad, but just the other day, she slipped and smacked into the edge of her bedroom door and got a nice little red mark on her face. Poor baby :(

Natalie has just about a full mouth of teeth now! We’re just waiting on two bottom eye teeth to finish poking their way through. It’s strange to see her with so many teeth… reminds me again of how big she’s getting. She really is a little toddler now I suppose- I’ve been so reluctant to officially call her that. She’s still a baby to me!

We’ve also transitioned to exclusively solid finger foods. She likes scrambled eggs, soft boiled veggies, pasta, and lots of fruits like grapes, bananas and oranges. But she’s also refusing lots of things all of the sudden, I’m thinking because of the texture. She won’t eat cooked rice or chicken, which she loved before in pureed form. But I continue to offer it to her in hopes that she’ll start eating it again. A couple weeks ago, I picked out some toddler forks and spoons for her to practice with and she’s been doing quite well with them! She mostly stabs at her bowl until she gets something on her fork, but then she carefully brings it to her mouth and eats it. I’ve seen her do this with both hands, so I’m not sure yet whether she’ll be left or right-handed.

In new baby news, I felt her hiccup for the first time last Wednesday night- we were out to eat with JoEllen and Patrick when I noticed this odd feeling down low. Hiccups are really unmistakable! I’ve felt many ever since, just like with Natalie. I always comment that I feel pretty much the same this time around, even though I always hear that every pregnancy is unique. However, this pregnancy has been slightly different in that I’ve been miserable with heartburn! I had some with Natalie, but not until quite a bit later. I don’t feel much like eating since everything causes that horrendous burning sensation and sometimes it’s so intense that it’s nauseating. So I’ve been eating lots of ice-cream- that’s one thing that sounds decent.


I had my 29/30 week check-up this past Monday, the 26^th. I met with my midwife once again and she seemed rather concerned about my lack of weight gain. I was surprised, given all the ice-cream I’ve been eating! (I don’t use a scale at home, so it’s always news to me when I get weighed). I have been trying to eat well, but I know I can always do better. And trying to keep up with Natalie all day is a work out. So I was instructed to eat more protein at every meal (and plenty of ice-cream too, for the heartburn). Then I had a quick ultrasound to confirm baby is head down, although I had no doubt of it because of her frequent bouts of hiccups- I can very easily tell where her head is. She looked so big on the ultrasound screen! It’s amazing how much she’s grown in the last 10 weeks or so, since I last saw her in ultrasound form. Then I talked with my midwife about our plans for Natalie during the birth, since she cannot be with us in the hospital overnight. We’ll have to come up with a good plan for her and most likely enlist the help of Auntie and grandma to help watch her.

We’ve decided it’s time to start setting up the house for new baby. I plan to borrow Elaine’s bassinet for a while, since it’s on wheels and can be easily moved from room to room. That’s one thing that I regret about the Co-sleeper that we have- it was great for nighttime, and it’s good for traveling as well, but it’s use is kind of limited since it’s so large and immobile. I wish I would have registered for the slightly smaller one on wheels instead. I also have to get our infant swing back from Elaine- luckily she’s been nice enough to store some of our things for us, since we were so tight on space at the old condo! Having a garage now is really a great thing.

I do feel kind of bad that new baby doesn’t have many new items of her own… pretty much everything is being re-used! I bought her a new coming home outfit and a couple other clothing items, but Elaine and I have tubs and tubs of baby clothes that were hardly used! I feel like there was so much set-up and preparation to do last time and now there’s really not much at all. But maybe this is a good thing, so I can focus instead on the transition to two and enjoying the newborn stage once again- I’m looking forward to soaking it in. It does go by so fast.

Girl's Outing to Sonoma

On Friday the 23^rd, our good friend Peter organized an overnight girl’s trip for Lisa and a few friends for her birthday. He arranged for the four of us to take an Italian cooking class at this inn/culinary school called Ramekins in Sonoma and then he booked a little spa retreat the next morning. It was odd to leave Natalie for that long- the longest I’ve been away from her is an 8-hour workday. But I knew she’d be fine with Daddy, she really enjoys her one-on-one time with Daddy.

The weather was really nice that Friday, so we enjoyed a nice stroll around the square in downtown Sonoma where had lunch and gelato. The cooking class was scheduled for that evening and I had no clue what to expect. But it was really fun! After a quick introduction from the chef and a tutorial for how to make dough, we made foccaccia bread and rolled and cut fresh pasta. There were about 25 people in the class, so the other groups focused on other dishes, like the meat, torte and dessert. Then at about 9:30pm, we finally ate! I told Eric before we left that I’d at least try everything… even though I don’t eat a lot of meat. But when would I have the chance to try such fancy fare again?

First course was this tuna/anchovy mixture stuffed in grilled peppers and served on a spring mix salad. Then came our delicious bread, which was easily my favorite part of the meal- it seriously contained at least 4 cups of olive oil! Next was the fresh pasta served with a three-meat white sauce consisting of veal, beef and pork. The pasta noodles were so good! Then came the veal topped with prosciutto and served with a quiche-like torte filled with butternut squash. I tried a bite of the veal and it was tender and tasted good I guess. The torte was lovely. Dessert was a whipped espresso mousse that I tried a small taste of. Also good, but it was strong!

I was pooped after the class! The rooms at the inn were really nice and I was hoping for a good night’s rest. Unfortunately I kept waking up! Probably because I’m just not used to sleeping without a baby in very close proximity. The next morning, we had waffles and fancy coffee/tea at a cute little café before going to the nail salon for manicures and pedicures. That was the first spa service I’ve had during this pregnancy! It was nice to have someone else do my toenails for a change. Then we headed back home. It was a really nice trip! We all kept commenting how thoughtful Peter was for planning such a nice outing for his wife and her friends. He did well!

Double Bumble!

After much searching, we are the proud new owners of a lightly used double bumble! What the heck is that, you ask? It’s an awesome double stroller made by Bumbleride- it’s really called an Indie Twin, but I think the name “double bumble” has stuck.

After finding out baby #2 was on the way, one of the only items I felt the need to thoroughly research was a good double stroller. I researched absolutely everything for Natalie- the car seat, the high chair, the diapers- but now, we get to reuse nearly everything, which is just great! So for the past couple months, I’ve been reading reviews and testing out samples at baby stores, trying to figure out what kind of double would work best for us. I had a basic list of requirements for the new stroller: it must have all-terrain tires (an absolute must- typical plastic tires just plain suck. They ware very easily and result in a bumpy, uncomfortable ride), it must be compatible with our infant car seat (a Chicco Keyfit 30), it must be somewhat compact and fold small enough to fit into our car (a Nissan Murano), and it must not cost a fortune. But I soon found that these seemingly basic requirements were hard to come by in a double!

I learned that there are two basic types of double strollers- tandem and side-by-side, each with their own advantages and disadvantages. It seemed most tandems were long and hard to steer, but narrow enough to fit through small spaces whereas side-by-side models were wider and bulkier, yet easier to push. And all of them were enormous! Plus, my options were very limited based on my need for all-terrain tires and compatibility with the infant car seat. I looked at Mountain Buggy, Baby Jogger and a few other “high end” brands. I was almost sold on the City Select by Baby Jogger- a compact tandem that seemed just perfect! But upon sampling, I found that Natalie barely fit in the seat! Plus, it was super pricey… I couldn’t justify the cost for a stroller that Natalie would outgrow in no time.

Anyway, I kept coming back to Bumbleride. We already own the single Indie and just love using it with Natalie. It’s versatile enough to take out on a light jog or out and about shopping. It’s a breeze to push, it folds compactly, and it worked great with the infant seat when she was smaller. It was so convenient to just pop the seat out of the car on onto the stroller when she was napping. It made outings much easier! So naturally, I was intrigued to sample the double bumble and see how it measured up.

But I couldn’t find one at the local baby stores! And double bumbles don’t come cheap- new ones sell for at least $600 and that classified as a fortune for us (I guess I was lucky to nab our single Bumbleride on clearance for about $250- which seemed like a lot at first, but we’ve found it to be well worth the cost). So I started scouring Craigslist and Ebay in search of a decent used one and I finally found one! In the color I wanted to boot- plain black and grey. There are some weird colors out there, like orange and lime green that I just don’t think I could learn to live with. The sellers were a nice couple in the city who were selling theirs for about half the cost of a new one, so I called and we arranged to meet that night. It was a terrible drive in pouring rain both there and back, but luckily Natalie took a little nap in the car. We were happy to find that it was in great condition- they claim to only have used it twice, as their older daughter now prefers to walk wherever they go. And they had all the original attachments and accessories along with the owner’s manual. SOLD!

So here’s our new double bumble!

Ready for two with our Chicco car seat installed on one side

Four air-filled tires make for a lovely smooth ride

Full canopies

Big under basket for lots of goodies

It's a little cumbersome to fold, but what double isn’t… at least it fits in the car! And there's even a little space left over for groceries, so I'm happy :)

Adjusting to our New Home-Sweet-Home & 28 Weeks

I was feeling pretty good up until this past week. Maybe the move did it, but I’m tired! My feet hurt, I have heartburn most evenings, and don’t feel much like eating. At 28 weeks now, I’m just about at the third trimester mark so maybe that has something to do with it. The other day when Natalie was napping, I actually took a break from cleaning and unpacking to sit and put my feet up in the recliner and it felt so good! I guess I need to do that more often.

Baby has been super active lately. I’ve noticed that the tummy now has a mind of its own- I’ll look down and see her dancing around all the time now. It’s so neat to see, but still so odd! I don’t think anyone can ever get used to it- the thought of someone else actually living and moving around in there. And I’m the one sustaining her every need. It still seems very unreal to me, just like it did the first time around.

After a few quick fixes, the new place is now nearly functional. The washer was finally fixed on Monday night, thank goodness. So now we’re finally back to cloth diapers! We replaced an outlet switch plate and made a few copies of the house key. But we still have a leaky kitchen faucet to deal with and an entryway light bulb to replace that is at least 10 feet high. Plus, I need to go out and find some more towels and bathroom accessories for the master bath. We’re not used to having two bathrooms!

Natalie is adjusting pretty well to the new place. She has just about mastered going up and down the stairs safely. It only took a couple days of showing her how to climb down the stairs on her tummy for her to catch on. Now she can do it all by herself! I’m glad that we only have 4 stairs to deal with though- an entire flight of stairs, especially since they’re hardwood, would make me really nervous! I’m very happy we only have one story. Her room is set up similarly to how it was at the old condo, although it is definitely smaller. Her “big girl” twin bed as we call it made its way back into her room after a brief stint in the third bedroom, since it’s so useful for panty changes and napping with her early in the morning so we don’t have to disturb Daddy in the other room.

The cats continue to annoy the heck out of me. They’ve been quarantined from anywhere past the stairs (where we put the baby gate), since I don’t want them sleeping with any of us or getting fur on the carpet. They cry in the morning sometimes. I kind of miss Mr. Blake, but not Penny- she’s such a little brat. I don’t know why I have so little patience for them lately! They were our first children and I still care for them, but I’m constantly trying to clean cat fur off of something or stepping on little pieces of cat litter. And then there’s the box… I’m so sick of the smell and the mess, even though Eric is good about changing it. I feel bad, but they’re just not my priority anymore.

Natalie has been eager to help us do things around the house. She continues to imitate us when we’re doing something, like when Daddy installed the diaper sprayer. She wanted to hold the wrench and tighten the bolts too. She’s such a big helper! And when she has the opportunity to get into my makeup, she loves to pretend to use the brushes and pencils on herself or her baby doll, which is just too cute!

Her poor hair looks terrible these days… it’s getting longer and longer in the back but it just tangles throughout the day when she’s playing. I brush it into a side ponytail most often when we go out so it looks semi decent, but when we’re at home, it’s just down and messy for the most part. Her hair has definitely reached an awkward stage of long, but not long enough to do much with it! Plus, it’s still so thin. I hope it starts to fill in soon.

We continue to work with Natalie on her words. Sometimes it sounds like Natalie is trying to say “yeah” when we ask her something and she does try to say words when we point them out to her, like “cat” or “dog.” I can tell she gets frustrated when she doesn’t get what she wants from pointing and grunting or can’t communicate effectively to us otherwise. I hope real words start developing soon!

Another Hasty Move! & 27 Weeks

Well, we’ve finally found a new place. It was a very quick and hasty move- we literally went to go look at the place last week and moved in just a few days later. What a crazy week!

One morning during my daily rental search, I found a listing for a 3 bedroom condo in Danville and decided to email the owner to ask if the place was still available. A lady named Melanie got right back to me and was eager to show us the place, so we decided to meet up later that evening. I rushed home from work to Eric and Natalie and met up with Melanie’s husband Mark, who showed us the property. We ended up chatting with him for nearly an hour, as we found we had quite a bit in common- we both had daughters born the same month and year, we both attended Cal, and we both were in similar situations in terms of choosing to rent out our properties, just as we do with the Brentwood house. We shared our story of being foreclosed on and trying to manage the tricky rental market, which he and his wife also had difficulty navigating.

The condo itself presented nicely- it had 3 smaller bedrooms and 2 full bathrooms. The common space was big and open with nice laminate flooring throughout and some updates, like new appliances. It also had a good amount of indoor storage space and even a detached garage. After our little tour, Mark basically told us that he liked us and that we would definitely be considered. So we filled out an application that evening, sent it over to them and we were immediately told that the place was ours if we wanted it. Then we spent a day or two drawing up a lease and scheduled to pick up the keys on February 28th.

Let the packing begin!

We had just three days to pack. Thank goodness for Elaine, who came over two days in a row just to occupy Natalie and help me pack up the place! She was such a great help, as I was super overwhelmed and very tired. Natalie and Stacie definitely had fun playing together and taking walks together with Auntie. And then Wednesday, February 29th was moving day. We had little choice but to schedule a mid-week move, as the new owner of the Walnut Creek condo wanted us out by the 1st of the month. JoEllen came over that day to help pack up the rest of the place and take a few loads to the new condo with Eric. Luckily a few people came out to help load up the truck that evening- my dad, Peter, Patrick, and one of Eric’s friends from his softball team. It was a long night but I was glad I didn’t have to lift a thing. I just had to mind Natalie and fetch dinner for everyone!

We went to the Walnut Creek condo one last time last night to pack up the fridge and clean up a little bit before we meet with the owner this weekend to exchange the keys for our deposit. I was sad to see the place empty- if the circumstances were different, I don’t think we would be leaving. I was happy there and we had so many good memories in that little condo… it’s the only place Natalie has called home- where we brought her home from the hospital, where she learned how to crawl, where she took her first swim, where we had her 1st birthday party- so many good memories in just over a year’s time. I was sad to say goodbye.

Natalie's 1st Home: 313 Masters Court #2

Mommy! What happened to all my tupperware?

My rolling pin is gone too!

Natalie's first bedroom... now just an empty room :(

The new place doesn’t feel like home yet, which is making it hard for me. We’re so unorganized at the moment, which I can’t stand. And Natalie is completely off schedule, thanks to a number of crazy, hectic days. We have boxes stacked everywhere and I haven’t even had the chance to do a good deep cleaning to the place. And we’ve already had to compile a list of things that need attention- the washing machine won’t drain, some floor vents are loose, a few electrical covers are missing, and the fridge is way too small for all our stuff. But I hope we’ll be able to settle in soon and make it feel a little more like home. We were brought to this new place for a reason and hopefully in time we’ll all be happy here.

I’ve realized recently that Natalie knows how to slide open closet doors and even open and close bedroom doors and things if she can reach the handle. We also let her practice walking outside more often, like to the car. But she doesn’t want to hold my hand! I try to grab for her hand but she immediately grunts and pulls away, as if to say “I can do it myself!” Once we get to a street or something, I end up having to grab her up off the ground, which always causes her to protest. We’re still waiting for new words to pop out of her mouth. She seems to say “yeah” at times and now shakes her head to say no if she doesn’t want something. But I’ve yet to hear anything else. I think the kid simply likes to point, sign “more” and grunt! It’s strange because Stacie says lots of associated words already, like cat and nana (for banana) whereas Natalie doesn’t. I know all kids grow and develop at different rates, but it still worries me in the back of my mind. I don’t want her to have speech issues like I did when I was young! But she is able to communicate none the less, so I guess that’s what matters.

I had an appointment on February 27th with my midwife. I had gone to the lab a few days before for a glucose screening, which tests for gestational diabetes. The results of the blood test were sent to me right away and my blood glucose level was at 132- the upper limit that warrants further testing was just 139! So that worried me a little. But, my midwife assured me all was well. I’d only gained a pound or two since my last visit and my pregnancy with Natalie was normal, so she said there was nothing to worry about. Baby measured exactly 26 weeks and the heartbeat was loud and clear on the doppler. It was a quick and easy visit and I was relieved that I didn’t have to worry about limiting my sugar intake or altering my diet! That would suck. I’ve been enjoying my occasional indulgences of root beer and ice-cream.

Baby moves around a lot now! Especially early in the morning when I’m trying to catch my last hour or so of sleep before the alarm goes off or Natalie starts to stir. She would rather poke around and summersault in there, keeping me awake! And my allergies have been absolutely terrible lately- I’m thinking it’s from the masses of pollen floating around lately, but also from all the dust and things that I’ve been kicking up from the move. I’m hoping the hard floors at the new place will be a nice change and maybe help improve my constant runny nose and watery eyes. So that’s been irritating. I’ve also been noticing that I have heartburn pretty frequently- I don’t remember having to deal with that until quite a bit later with Natalie.