IT'S A...

BABY!

Sorry to disappoint, but we are waiting until baby Barber arrives to find out the gender! I am personally looking forward to the big moment when Bryan gets to tell me and everyone else "It's a ***!"

I know, my doctor's office has probably the most ancient ultrasound machine, but this is what I get to work with. Today's appointment was extra special not only sharing the experience with Bryan, but also with Sophie (who frequently tried to grab the wand, stick her hand on my tummy in the jelly; whose "hey baby!" turned into "bye-bye baby" before the ultrasound was over).

So, the big news will be shared with the world on or around November 21st, 2011!

xo

Motherload

The motherload of blog entries is here. If you aren't interested in cute pictures, Sophie's diet, or my homemade concoctions then stop reading now. I have been slacking, but the dearth of blog activity in no way reflects the level of activity at the Barber household!

Baby #2 update: I've gained only 4lbs (which I believe will be picking up pace here soon the way I've been eating!), and we have our 18 week ultrasound tomorrow. I started feeling the baby move for sure over the last seven days. That is one of the most incredible things to me - to feel the little human inside of me dancing around! Sophie has started kissing my belly, patting gently and saying "baby!" Oh, I can't wait to see her playing with her sibling in a few short months.

What Sophie has been doing: Running, sprinting... she really only has one speed these days and it's fast. Mommy has to watch her potty mouth now because we have a parrot in the room - she repeats everything! She was officially 18 months on Friday. Seriously, where does the time go? She loves jumping off the side of the pool into my arms and going underwater - she honestly wants me to just let go and swim on her own. But babydoll, we need a few more swim lessons before that happens.

What she is eating: Geez louise. We had toddler food boot camp start on Friday. Dad was around all weekend to help me with willpower because I couldn't do it alone. Brief history: I nursed as long as I could, I made almost all of Sophie's baby food, and I buy organic whenever possible. It's no secret that I get over-the-top frustrated when she doesn't eat well for a few days. It's also no secret that I get euphoric when she eats a well-balanced meal. SO, back to the toddler food boot camp.

The short and sweet is that we took the sweets off the table - literally (juice, dried and fresh fruit). Friday she was offered a protein, grain and vegetables... and went to bed without eating dinner Friday. I made banana corn fritters with whole wheat flour and flax seeds Saturday morning... and she didn't eat breakfast. Come lunch time on Saturday, she was hungry ("hummy" as she likes to say). She ate grilled chicken, cucumber, sunflower seed butter toast, a banana corn fritter, water and as a treat, a box of raisins. Saturday dinner and all day Sunday was just as successful and we're trying new vegetables and using fruit as maybe once a day treat instead of what seemed like an entire meal sometimes. Now that Dad goes back to work tomorrow, let's hope we have continued success!

It is summer and lots of kids like Popsicles when it is hot out. Keeping in line with my healthy food plight, I will do anything to keep Flav-o-ice and it's high fructose corn syrup out of Sophie's little body. With my bpa-free Popsicle forms, I made apple-sicles! One part organic chunky applesauce, two parts organic apple juice, one part water.

And now, for recent pictures.

Apple-sicles.

One happy customer.

Dada picked out and hung a new swing for Sophie.

The neighbors were outside for her inaugural ride.

Farm Day at the Charlotte Nature Museum.

After this encounter, every animal was "horsey!"

Dada and Sophie in the butterfly room.

I finished putting breakfast away and found Sophie standing

in her Dad's Crocs and smiling widely.

Pickles.

My second attempt at homemade dill pickles loosely adapted from this recipe... these were right on par. We ended a great Father's Day weekend with grilled burgers and fresh green beans from our neighbor's garden. The burgers were topped with as many pickles as we could fit! Happy Father's Day to the most wonderful Dad Sophie could ever ask for, and to my Dad, the best one I could ever ask for!

Favorite things: pregnancy edition

OK, so a few little things I couldn't get through this pregnancy without...

A LOT of sleep

A very endearing, empathetic and patient husband

A good pillow

Good cheese (currently brie, swiss, american, cheddar, white cheddar) and fruit (currently oranges, strawberries, frozen mixed berries, pineapple, cantaloupe) in the house at all times

A monthly pedicure

My Nalgene bottle (number 2 plastic)

I got a good tip from my friend Meagan about finding a prenatal vitamin that is free of dyes, preservatives, dairy, gluten, and soy (HINT: the one that your doctor prescribes most likely has ALL of these things), because if we are being honest, there are already far to many of these unnecessary additives in our diet. I wanted to source one locally so that I didn't have to pay someone to ship it across the country to me. Trader Joe's Daily Prenatal is the only one I found that fit the bill!

TJ's prenatal does not have DHA Omega-3 supplement, so I was off on a hunt for that one, too. I actually found one at Target that is made with Algal Oil - a plant based DHA which is great for vegetarians but also those of us who just want to avoid possible exposure to mercury or other ocean-born contaminants from the traditional DHA that is mined from fish that are farm raised and spend their days swimming in their own poop.

For my own brain (DHA is for the baby), I stick to ONE single book: Your Pregnancy Week by Week. If I come up with any questions that aren't found here, I call my doctor. Too many books have too many conflicting facts/opinions and it is really easy to confuse an already worried expectant mother (maybe just my experience!).

So, that is what I do for my insides. For the outsides, I love love love Body Shop's Cocoa Butter Moisturizing Stick. I know that stretch marks are said to be genetic, but I used this twice a day while pregnant with Sophie and don't have a hint of a stretch mark. Genetics or a great product... I'm using it again!

Crayola by any other name?

Would a Crayola by any other name be just as colorful and vibrant and spark free-flowing creativity and imagination?

Sometimes I think I can literally see Sophie's brain getting bigger, new paths forming, new electrodes firing... whatever exactly happens in that sweet little head of hers. I've tried talking more, describing more, telling her what we are doing more and more - and she really gets it, or at least she looks at me like she does!

Coloring and drawing in her sketch pad are her new favorite things. I watched her stare down one of her crayons and started describing it to her. The only problem is I think I just confused her more:

It's red, it's made of wax, it's covered in paper, it's a cylinder, it makes marks, it's soft, it melts, it lives in a tidy little box with other crayons...

But where do I stop? At "it's red?" I certainly don't want to short-change her, so I guess I'll just keep talking :)

Preggo, round two

Well, we're adding a new character to the blog. Affectionately known around here as jellybean, peanut, beh-beh... the usual list goes on but nothing has stuck yet. We've been telling Sophie that there is a baby in Mommy's belly, and her new favorite thing to do is to lift Mommy's shirt for a closer look... in public... like, at Target. Awesome.

I've heard that no two babies are alike, no two birth stories are alike, no two pregnancies are alike. I buy it. I've been beyond tired to the point where I have to partake in two to three hour naps with Sophie after lunch or I can't make it through dinner time. This means that a lot of my good intentions have taken a temporary backseat: my culinary explorations have slowed dramatically, my 30 in 30 book project has all but ended and I haven't made a coffee bag pillow in months.

Other than the tiredness, I've had some major food aversions (which now at 15 weeks are finally starting to subside). The thought of eating meat for the last six weeks has been simply stomach churning, and forget my favorite crockpot - if I have to smell something cooking for eight hours then don't even think this Mommy is going to eat it. Ugh.

On pregnancy, round two, I also think the doctor has told me different things. This time around they are saying NO tuna (before I think it was once a week), ONE caffeinated beverage per day (before I think it was two-three), and NO lunch meat (before I think it was use your judgement).

And finally, it is safe to say that everything is happening faster this time. From what I understand, my abdomen is already wrecked - I mean stretched - I mean warmed up - so at 15 weeks, I look more like 18/19 weeks! Who knew.

What's a post without some photos. Enjoy.

At 14 weeks in Chicago!

We got fussed at for taking a picture in front of a temporary exhibit. Whoopsy-daisy.

The picture I wanted was in front of a Pollock painting. Oh well!

My little love bug at a recent playgroup.