31 weeks and counting

Here I am almost 8 months pregnant looking like an over ripe tangerine.  I swear my belly is huge.  If only my chest would stop growing so you could tell.  Ahh, the joys of pregnancy!

dreaming

Lately I find myself daydreaming about the baby. What she will look like, what characteristics she will get from me or her dad. I am really hoping she gets my hair and his persistence. Her big brother got my husband's hair.

And it only got worse as he got older. His hair was his trade mark. I worked so hard to get it to lay down. I eventually just embraced the crazy hair.

Luckily, a boy can get away with a buzz cut and that is the style my son wears now that he is a little boy.

I also wonder if she will look like my son. He really didn't look like himself at all on his first photos (the hospital photo above). I suppose he is still a bit squishy in that photo and the birth was pretty hard on both of us.

I know one thing I pray for is an easy delivery this time. It has to be easier than my first. It took him 24 hours, an infection, fever, decelerations of his heart, and a whole lot of stress and trouble to come into this world. The poor boy stopped breathing afterwards from all the stress. Luckily, he is a fighter and didn't let all that get in his way.

But as you can see, he wasn't happy about it...at all. I swear he cried for the first 4 months of his life. I probably cried along with him many of those days.

Nothing can prepare you for the roller coaster ride of becoming a new parent. As soon as you think you have figured out one thing they grow up more and you have to figure it all out again. And of course, no two children are the same, especially a boy and a girl. I think the hardest part so far for me is having to watch my heart walk around outside my body and it just gets worse the older and more independant they get. I will do my best to remember this at 3 am when my daughter is screaming for milk.

Oh, and I miss the crazy hair now.

fashion for this nursing mom

My time as a pregnant woman is coming towards an end now. I am 8 months pregnant and done buying maternity clothes. I am however ready to start buying clothes for after the baby. I plan on nursing with this one as well and will be needing some tops that are boob accessible and forgiving around the tummy area as my mine will still be shrinking.

I am thinking that after this baby I will have a few extra lbs. to loose and so I decided to check out Target's plus size department so that I can go with some tops that will give me some extra room. I tend to run in between the teenie bopper sizing and plus so I have the luxury of shopping both. And to be honest the thought of wearing a size 1 is pretty cool. (if you don't know that would be a 1x. This appears to be how Target sizes the bigger girl's clothing). Shopping at Target is a good idea since their clothes are affordable so I won't be bummed if I only wear them this year.

So here is my list of fall must have tops for the breastfeeding/postpartum mom (me) in no particular order. I tried to go loose around the tummy and give easy access to the milk bags. If you must have one of these items just click on it to go directly to it on Target's website.

diaper bag smackdown

I can't for the like of me remember my son's diaper bag. I can however remember his toddler bag which I had custom made with a ton of pockets and I loved that bag. Now that I am onto numero 2 I need a diaper bag again. A friend gave me one she didn't need anymore and so I have one for now but it doesn't hook to a stroller so that will be my back up bag for the car.

My diaper bag wish list:

1. must hook to a stroller




2. should match my stroller (red)




3. lots of pockets




4. trendy




5. would like a backpack option for when my hands are full
   
   

So there you have it. I may be a little picky but hey, I have to tote this thing around for the next 1-2 years so I better LOVE it.

Here is what I have come up with so far. Click on the pictures to go to the diaper bag at diaperbags.com. All but one of them are located there and the site is fantastic for showing lots of pictures and details of their bags.

This 1st bag is by Skip Hop and it's the Uptown Duo Deluxe. I love all the pockets and it's the perfect size.

The second bag is the Skip Hop Studio Diaper Tote in black. I love that this bag doesn't look like a diaper bag. It even has insulated pockets for bottles. The only downside is that the handles are a little shorter than I prefer.

The third bag is the Ju Ju Be Lotus Lullaby Pack a Be. This one of the more expensive of the four at $117.98 but it does meet all my requirements because it's the only one that converts to a backpack. The down side is that there aren't any pictures of the inside of this bag on the website. I need to know what the inside looks like before I buy, ya' know?





And last but certainly not least I must add this fabulous bag by Storksak. My fashionista side LOVES it but once again there isn't any inside photos. It does however hook to a stroller and turn into a backpack. On sale right now for $122.99 but not returnable if you don't like it. Hmmm....

So there you have it. My tops 4 diaper bag choices. I will have to narrow it down soon so if you have one of these bags or another one you really love please share.