Mrs. Martin

I can't believe I have never seen this thread!! Here's a pic of my baby, Apollo, during Christmas time:

Calia- Thanks for the info. I actually did see a light-weight stroller from MacLaren @ BRU, but it was over $200 and I thought it was too much. However, I checked online yesterday and they seem to have another MacLaren light weight for less $$. I'm going to check to see if they have it at the store so I can try it out in person. I registered for one from Chicco and it seemed to be just fine for my height. Kelly- This may sound like a stupid question considering I'm a few weeks away from having a baby and I should know this by now, but what does the plug look like? Is it obvious when it falls out? I also heard some women lose it gradually, not all at once. Is that true? I know what it is, I'm just not sure I would be able to identify it considering you tend to discharge a lot when pregnant.

Quote: Originally Posted by carly I know, for my sister, she had a couple lightweight ones and just kept them in the trunks of different cars. It makes it easier, so it's totally a preference. Like when I lived with her and her ex, I had an extra car-seat in my car and they both had car seats in their cars (free or cheap from garage sales for the extras) and she left lightweight strollers in each cars trunks. That way we were never at the mall like "oh crap, we forgot a stroller!" Quote: Originally Posted by Tlseege Yeah, I definitely have all three strollers. The jogging strollers typically don't compact down very much. So i have the travel stroller for big trips. I have the jogging stroller for jogging/walking/gravel trips. And then I have a Jeep Umbrella stroller (only one I ever found with high enough handles so my back doesn't hurt) to just throw in the trunk just in case. Because it folds up so small and easy it's really nice. especially if you're just going somewhere like the park or to the neighbors house or something. It's light weight, easy to travel with, and little to no fuss. Thanks to both of you for the input. Both of you are right, I never even thought about just leaving the lightweight stroller in the car just to have incase I need it and it's fuss-free. Plus, it doesn't take up much space since it folds up. I'll keep all three!!

Kelly- how was your appt? I have a question for you all- what's up with Charley Horses while your pregnant? I have had so many lately!!! I don't even have to be moving in my sleep to get them, they just happen. Last night I had another one and I start yelling and my poor hubby jumped out of bed and thought I was going in to labor. I always freak him out when I get one, so he said in the future to just yell out "charley horse" so he know's why I'm screaming and moving around at night. Also, for you ladies with kids already, I have a question about strollers. I already received a full-sized, system travel stroller, but I noticed on my registry that someone also purchased a jogging stroller and a light weight stroller for us. Do I need that many? I want to keep the jogging stroller because I love to run and I know I will use it for sure, but do I need the other lightweight stroller? If I wanted to use something lighter than the travel system stroller, I can always just use the jogging one, right? I haven't even received the other two, but I was just trying to figure out whether I would actually need all three so I can return one or just keep it.

Your pics are beautiful, Michelle!! I love the details of your dress, it's stunning! Congrats on looking amazing and having a beautiful wedding!!

Tlseege- thanks, you're so sweet! I just realized that you can't really see my belly in the pics, but it's there!! GeminiLibra- I would be mad, too!! Of all themes to choose from and she chooses yours!! Just wait to see what her nursery looks like so you can decorate yours a little different and 100x's better!! I'm sure yours will look great! Kat- Congrats on your little girl!!!!!!!!! Your hubby and you must be sooo excited!! All of you are having girls so far!! Besides Bisha and I, are we the only ones with boys?! Come on ladies, start making some baby boys ASAP!! Angel- Sorry to hear she's still breech. 3 weeks is a long time, so you never know, she may decide to flip by then!! Summer- Count down is on....you're going to have a baby any moment now...... Regarding the sleeping, yah, I'm having trouble too. The issue is, I've been waking up hot and sweaty (and I'm usually always cold at night) no matter the temperature, so I can't really sleep with a body pillow to help out. It makes me hotter, but then again my legs begin to lock up and they hurt with out one. I hope everyone else is doing well!

All your pics are so pretty!! I love the pic with the entire wedding party wearing the masks, that's too funny!!

Bisha- Wow, you had a whole day of labor! Sorry to hear the epidural didn't do anything for you- that's actually pretty scary the hear!! Gavin is so handsome, thanks for sharing pics! Summer- 8 pounds?!!! I hope she doesn't get to 9!! Glad to hear your BP has been good. Here are a few pics from the shower my in-laws had for us this weekend: DH and I with our cake- it had the cutest baby in a police car on it!: DH was very happy to get a Dodgers cap and "Martin" shirt for the baby: DH's aunt bought us this bedding set. I didn't register for it but I really liked it, so this is what I'll be using for the crib: My best friend bought us this sign and I absolutely love it because this is the baby's name until we agree on one. I'm planning on hanging it on his door.

Thanks for posting these, Bisha! You look great and they came out beautiful. I love the one where your DH is looking up at you and you're looking down at him. Also, the one with your legs/belly only is hot!! I'm sure your hubby was happy to see that one!

Ok, so I must have already packed my camera because I can't find it anywhere. These are the only pics I have from my iphone, I will try to take more later. Mind you, I took these when we first saw the house so the yard/pool doesn't look as nice now front of house (it's on a cul-de-sac, that's why it looks curved): pool/spa: Chandalier that owners want to take (and I hope they don't!) :

I had already taken a vacation a year before at the location where I got married. That's really the main reason I chose that place. I was afraid to pick a location I had never been to and I didn't have it in my budget to do any site visits. At least this way I knew what to expect from the staff/hotel/location.

Quote: Originally Posted by Soon To Be Mrs. Gomez Hi, We are in Whiitier now and I would like to stay there, but the houses are smaller and are pricy. I like Upland too and DH likes Covina; we both work in that area but I know that alot of homes in Corona are super nice and huge! Thanks for sharing! We're not far from each other at all! I really like Whittier, too. It's a lot like Downey though, still pretty expensive to buy a nice house there. I lived in Covina for about a year and was happy there. I really like Upland/Claremont area, too. DH wanted a newer home and I really didn't care as long as I was close to work, so Corona seemed to have houses that we liked and that were in our price range. Good luck when you begin your house hunting!

Quote: Originally Posted by Abbie wooohooo! super excited for you! ok and im lame but i know nothing about house buying so forgive me, but why is it called "stealing" of the previous owners when its still their house until its sold? is it because they are taking things that are "part" of the house and its generally understood that those items will stay with the house? were those items in the contract?? Even though they were no longer making mortgage payments, legally they could still have access to the house because it's a shortsale and not yet foreclosed on. So, they weren't breaking in or doing anything illegal by that. However, all the things they took were part of the negations (unless they stated other wise from the very beginning) therefore when we originally placed an offer, we placed an offer according to the house as is from when we saw it. The only thing that was not part of the purchase price was the chandalier they had which ironically they left. We were going to purchase it from them, but after all the crap they did we were going to just suck it up and buy our own (even though we loved theirs). But, it's still there so we'll see if they do take it by the end of the week. Oh, I don't know if I mentioned this but they stole the microwave/hood combo which is a built-in and part of the house!!

Quote: Originally Posted by Alyssa and definitley get the locks changed and a security system ASAP b/c it sounds like the owners are freaks! Yes, we are going to change the locks ASAP. If we do get the keys on Friday, we will be getting the locks changed that evening or Saturday morning, for sure!! Quote: Originally Posted by Soon To Be Mrs. Gomez OH that is so great! I'm happy for you. I will happily wait for pics. How is yoru pregnancy going? The house price you got is great! I'm a So. Cal girl so I want to know what area you bought in because we are getting ready to start saving for our 1st home. My pregnancy is going great, thanks for asking. I'm loving this time right now because the baby is so active inside of me; I'm going to miss that. We currently live in Downey, but we will be moving to Corona (that specific area is called Eastvale). Not Corona off the 91, but closer to the 60 and 15 (next to Norco). I work in Ontario so I'll be 7 miles from work!! My DH works in Downtown LA, but he works in the evening and only 3-4 days a week, so he won't be getting traffic at all. Where do you live right now? Where were you looking to move to?

Sorry this is so long-For those who read my post on the drama we were having trying to get a house, we are finally getting the house we placed an offer for back in December! http://bestdestinationwedding.com/forum/t39932 But, let me tell you, this house was a pain to get. It was a shortsale and after all the drama we had when it originally fell out of escrow, we moved on and found 2 other houses we liked and we placed offers. The very next day (this was in mid April) we received a call that the short-sale house was now available and our offer was still being accepted. So, we immediately remove the other offers and checkout the house again just to confirm we accept it and can begin escrow. We checked it out and so far nothing else has been stolen by the previous owners with the exception of 2 palm trees (but this is after they had already taken the fountain, BBQ island in the back, patio, and all the closet shelves). So, we started escrow and had the house inspected and appraised immediately. It appraised for less than what we offered (originally we offered $480 back in December), then we offered $412 when we restarted escrow and then it appraised for $370. So, after 3 1/2 weeks of escrow we still didn't hear anything from the bank about our updated offer. At this point we really weren't expecting to get the house and were upset that we had already spent $$ getting it inspected and appraised. The bank contacted our realtor and broker the last day of escrow (seriously we were called at 3 and everything had to be approved by 5). The realtor selling the house never supplied the bank with the new appraisel and offer amount therefore they approved the house at $412. Well, our loan won't go through because our appraisel doesn't show the house to be worth that much. Long story short, we agreed in the middle and we will be paying $390 and we had our apprailsel and loan adjusted right away. The good thing about us not getting the house back when we originally offered was that we now got it for a lot less and we were able to save more $$ and actually put down 20% instead of 10%. 3 days ago we found out the previous owners stole the water heater and the rest of the light fixtures. But, the water heater is getting replaced today and we received the credit for the light fixtures so we can purchase them ourselves. Hopefully they won't take anything else by Friday so we won't have to delay the close of escrow. We put our current house for rent this weekend (we were going to rent it to DH's cousin, but didn't end up working out) and within 3 days found renters. They just gave us the deposit yesterday plus 2 months of rent. What a relief! I thought it would take us a while to find renters. With the money we will be making on that house, the mortgage on our new house will be mostly paid. I'm just soooo happy we found a house before the baby arrived! Now, I can finally start on a nursery! We have a lot to do in the house since no one has lived there since October. We're going to have put new grass, the pool/jacuzzi need an acid wash, and we are going to hire 2 people to detail the inside of the house before we move in our things because it's dirty!! I don't have any pics right now, but I will download some later today and post them later for you all to see! Thanks for listening; I can't begin to tell you what a relief this all is!

Tlseege- I love your pics!! You have such a cute belly and I swear mine looks so much bigger than yours! Tammy did a great job!! Chanti- Good luck with the baby making on your weddingmoon Bisha- It's nice to hear from you! I'm glad everything is going well and that you already fit in your pre-pregnancy jeans. Please post more pics of baby Gavin when you get a chance. Summer- Sorry to hear about your BP. How has it been lately? Please keep us posted and best of luck in case you don't read this in time and you already had/having the baby!! Kelly- I can't believe you are sooo close!! Wait, aren't Angel and you due around the same time?! Wow, so many babies here at once!! I had one of my showers this weekend and it was a lot of fun. My parents bought us the travel system stroller we wanted and my grandma got us the high chair (actually we got 2!). We got some other things we registered for but for the most part I received lots of blankets for some reason! I don't know if I'll ever need that many, but I have tons now. I will download pics tonight and post them for you all.

Summer- How have you been feeling so far? Sorry to hear that you were put on bed rest. But, like someone else stated, take advantage and just enjoy doing nothing because you will not have that luxury when the baby comes! Good luck! Kelly- Have you been behaving (as your doc put it) so your blood pressure won't rise again?! Angel- congrats on getting everything at your baby shower; that must have been a relief for you! Can't wait to see pics!! I have my first baby shower tomorrow and I'm really excited!! It's being hosted by my DH's side of the family and then 2 weeks later my mom is hosting one for me for our side of the family/friends. Then I have another one in July hosted by my friend at work. We don't have anything (besides a few onsies and a Halloween costume) for the baby yet, so anything is a blessing at this point!! Besides that, I'm feeling very well! Just starting to get some minor swelling in the feet/ankles by the end of the day, but nothing else going on. How are the rest of the ladies feeling?!

Chanti- I loved to work out prior to me being pregnant. I seriously went to the gym all the time and I loooooved to run. Now, when I got pregnant it was a whole other story. My morning sickness during the 1st trimester was mostly in the afternoon and evening time, so once I left work I would go home and sleep because I didn't feel well and most people have zero energy around that trimester. I was also bleeding at first so my doc didn't give me the ok to work out until about my 12th week. After that, it was really hard to get in to a routine. All though I didn't go to a gym, just walking the dog seemed to take my breath away. I wish I could be more active because I really miss working out, it's just not recommended to do if you didn't work out from the very beginning. My heart rate tends to rise and I get shortness of breath right away if I walk even at a regular pace. So, I only walk maybe 2 or 3 times a week, but it's something!

Hi everyone! Trisha- Congrats!! Did you have a feeling you were having a girl the whole time?! Summer- Mikka is a beautiful name! I have an aunt named Mikaela and we call her Mikka all the time. I've always loved the way it sounded. GeminiLibra- No, I have never even heard of hypnobirthing classes until I read your post. I'm glad you loved it; I'm going to read in to that. I feel like I'm so behind with the classes because I haven't even signed up for the basic L&D, breastfeeding, and childcare classes that my hospital offers. We're going to be moving early June (still keeping my fingers crossed because we haven't closed escrow yet) so I don't want to sign up for them until I know what location is going to work best for me because we will be living an hour away from our old location. I had an appt Tuesday and guess what....I gained 2 pounds in a month!! I was so worried I was going to have another 8 pound month again! I got my results from the glucose test and everything was fine. They did say my iron was low, so to just take an additional supplement. But, my baby boy is doing well and kicked the nurse again when they were checking his hearbeat because she was pushing in to my belly. I swear, I'm amazed at how active and stubborn he is. He'll kick me until I move positions if my belly is too close to the mattress when I'm sleeping. How is everyone else doing?

When we got married, I cancelled my savings account (which for some reason was really hard for me to do) and joined his money market account (we use that as our savings) that he has with his work's credit union. But, I kept my own checking account and I joined his checking, too. I kept mine because I get paid direct deposit and my student loans are automatically deducted from that account and I just thought it would be easier to keep it. I also transfer $$ to our money market account every month and just keep whatever is left in my own checking. I don't know why, but I just need to have my own $$ even if I don't spend it. I use our joint checking for everyday expenses and bills/mortgage. We also have 1 individual credit card each and 1 joined. So far, this has worked out perfect for us.

Congratulations, Bisha!! He's adorable!! I can't wait to hear about your labor story. Get plenty of rest and congrats again to you and your family on your beautiful baby Gavin!

Your pics look great, congrats!! I know everyone else has said this, but your cake looks amazing! I'm glad it not only looked good, but tasted good too!!

I know I'm not helping the situation but after reading this I, too, began having an M&M craving so I went to buy a bag and ate them all! I am pregnant, though, so that's my excuse I like the suggestion about the chocolate milk, I use to do that too when I was on my wedding diet because I always craved chocolate.

Bisha- I was wondering about you as well. I'm glad to hear everything went well. The procedure sounds painful (even though I know you said it wasn't), so I'm glad you didn't have any sort of major discomfort. Good luck and I hope the baby remains in that position! Thanks for sharing the shower pics! You look so pretty pregnant!! And you need to post some pics from the shoot as soon as you get them! Trisha- You must be so excited about your shower!! This is when you find out the gender, right? No updates on the baby on my side, everything has been going just fine. I have a 28 week appt on Tuesday, so we'll see how that goes. I had a maternity massage yesterday and it felt soooo good. I wish I can have one everyday! How is everyone else been doing?

Jess, the invitations look great! I just love that color combo! I match up grey with almost every thing I can imagine in my house because it has such a great look to it!