Weekly Randoms - 12/26

becausescience

becausescience

How was everyone's holiday? Anybody have a favorite gift the got or gave they want to share?

baybeesunflower

Christmas was great! Different this year as my parents moved across the country and neither of us could afford to fly out for a visit. I got some wireless headphones I am obsessed with and can't wait to use at the gym or during the beginning of labor.

GG620

Christmas was so wonderful! I hate that I am back at work (and super sick blehh) but I loved the whole weekend!! My mother got us this adorable lamp for the nursery and also some skincare I have been dying for!  

megpeg

We had a great Christmas. We let the kids open our gifts on Saturday so they had time to play with them- Sunday we had Christmas with DHs moms family and Monday with my family both an hour drive away.
They got their santa gifts Christmas morning which is one cool but small gift each and their stocking stuff. 
The kids loved their gifts and have been having a blast playing with everything. 
  My favorite gift is the 150 prismacolor colored pencil set my mom got me.
  Now I am onto cleaning which I feel has been neglected for the last few weeks with everything we have had going on. The kitchen is almost done and reorganized and the kids have taken all the decorations off the tree. I need to get everything put away so I can move the excess out of the nursery and get it painted.

DDRRT1982

We had a good Christmas.  I got a gift card from my parents that I proceeded to buy all the kids nice shoes with.  I even bought this LO a pair of Freshly Picked Moccassins.  No regrets!!!

gh515

Christmas was lovely, and my first nephew just turned 11 weeks old and slept for 8 hours in a row at night on Christmas Eve, so I'm pretty sure it's a miraculous time for everyone. (;

After 7 years of teaching, thus used to winter break this week, I'm a little bitter to be an office worker today. But I shouldn't complain about slow days with baby just 80 days away!

crossfitbabybump

My DH went out (ON HIS OWN) and found a handmade personalized Christmas ornament that has two penguins on it. One is holding an egg (aka baby) and it says "we're expecting!" 2018 and it has our names above the parent penguins and our daughters name in the egg. I CRIED. SO HARD. Can I marry this man, again!?

ashleyf911

We had a good Christmas here! My mom visited for a long weekend from Florida and got to come to my 30wk appointment on Friday. We unfortunately had to take the 2.5 y/o to the doctor on Christmas Eve... croup stinks, fyi. BUT he's been handling it like a champ - Santa gave him a new bedroom with a big boy bed and he slept all night last night plus today's nap in it with no problem.   

My favorite gift was a new JuJuBe diaper bag that DH knew I had been eyeballing.  I have a skiphop bag right now that works fine but it'll be nice to have a bigger one with 2 kids. My parents got me some ugg slippers with hard soles that are amazing, too. I practically lived in a pair of them during maternity leave with DS. And my in-laws got me an instant pot! I'm super excited to try that out... anyone have any favorite recipes??

gh515

@ashleyf911 I've been eyeing an instant pot for a while... and only talked myself out of it saying I didn't have enough storage in kitchen for it, but everything you can make on it probably balances out! 

One of my college classmates has a cooking blog and has become OBSESSED with instant pop recipes this fall. Here's her bunch (which I haven't tried, but her other stuff is good, so I'd trust it!):

https://www.wellplated.com/category/recipes-by-type/instant-pot/

megpeg

@ashleyf911 you will love that instant pot especially with 2 little ones. It's not necessarily a time save but it's a set it and forget it which is great because you don't have to stand over a stove and stir...
my favorite Mac and cheese recipe- 
https://www.dadcooksdinner.com/pressure-cooker-macaroni-and-cheese/

@gh515 you don tell need storage for it because you will never put it away. I use it at least 4 nights a week.

StephBrim24

We just moved in September so we’ve been paying for stuff left and right to update the home. I know DH has been feeling tense about all the purchases so I was shocked when he gave me a “certificate” to purchase a rocking recliner of my own choice. Huuuge deal. I’m on baby #3 and have broken my back rocking the first two in gliders as I kept dropping off to sleep by accident and worrying we’d fall out of the chairs. This was my dream! So excited!

bravoandprosecco

My crockpot just broke so should I just buy an Insta pot thing? Can you use it like a crockpot? @megpeg @gh515 thanks!

DDRRT1982

Personally, I like my crockpot better.  However, I know people that have pretty much replaced their crockpot with an instapot.  Not me, though!

ashleyf911

@gh515 @megpeg thanks for the recipes, those all look amazing! I threw some chicken wings in there tonight and they just fell off the bone. So good.  I'll try a few other things this week and see how it goes.

megpeg

@bravoandprosecco if you love your crockpot I wouldn't necessarily replace it with an instant pot. There is a slow cooker function on the duo but I haven't heard good things and haven't tried it. I like that I can cook chicken breast from frozen in 25 minutes and hard cook eggs and not pay attention to anything but if you are working and won't get home until meal time it may not be a good replacement.

megpeg

@ashleyf911 it is a game changer for ribs. I pressure cooked them for 45 minutes then grilled them for 15 over the summer and they were perfect. Any type of soup is great too and tastes like it cooked for hours- pho is amazing in it.

cford08

While I loved Christmas with the fam,  I will say LO cleaned up and he's not even here yet! DH got me a super cute sky blue purse and matching wallet as my current wallet was falling apart. He's a sweetheart 

OAN: Am I missing your posts or @ShawnnaO are you moving already? Gotta make sure all the mamas are ok 

ShawnnaO

@cford08 We’ve been SO BUSY with moving that I don’t come on here a lot. Plus my husband is FINALLY home so I’ve been spending time with him and my daughter. I was even MIA on FB for a few days. But I’m here! A couple more weeks of craziness and hopefully I’ll be back to posting regularly here again.

BrittnieMariee

Our Christmas was mostly good! We had a great time with our parents and DS got a bunch of great gifts. I didn’t receive much and I’m totally fine with it. I wanted everyone to focus on DS because I enjoy seeing him happy. However, we were at my mom’s doing our traditional Christmas stuff and DS suddenly got a fever?? We ended up in the ER because he got up above 104. He seemed better yesterday so I went After Christmas shopping with my mom and DS stayed at home with dad. He went to bed kind of late and woke up from 4-6:15am this morning he’s still asleep now and still has a fever and is crying in his sleep. Not really sure what’s wrong with him but I might be calling his ped shortly...

missnc77

I normally love Christmas and want it to last forever, but this year, I want to take all the decor down. I’m so ready for January, mainly because I’m so ready for March. Let’s keep it moving! I feel like the third tri is going to drag. 

vflux33

@cford08 Yeah I was apparently really hard to buy for this year so I told people to just get us baby stuff because we need that stuff more, so I didn't get a whole lot, which is totally fine. I don't know what I'm going to fit into, I don't want jewelry or anything like that since I probably won't be able to wear it for who knows how long etc. MH got me a really nice purse and everything from everyone else was pretty much for the kids. 

@BrittnieMariee Oh no, I hope he feels better soon!!

MH and I did our last ever private just us Christmas (families don't live near us and no way am I traveling at this point since I'm uncomfortable AF and high risk etc.). Best. Decision. Ever. We've been catching up on the last few seasons of The Americans, relaxing, and getting quick phone updates on our families' dramas without having to participate. So much better than Thanksgiving. I feel like we really won the holidays this year.

chasingroygbiv

@missnc77 I usually slip into a slight depression every Dec 26th because I love Christmas so much and hate to see it go and have such a bare house, but I’m with you. This year, tear it all down, we have a baby to look forward to! 

BrittnieMariee

@missnc77 I swear, the third trimester is at least 16 months long. I hate it. It’s so slow and you’re so uncomfortable and everyone you see is all “you haven’t had that baby yet?” Ugh. 

@vflux33 thank you! During the day he seems fine! It’s usually at night that his temp spikes. Hopefully we’re coming to the end!

cford08

@vflux33 I was NOT expecting the purse I got. DH is really frugal, so I was pleasantly surprised 

mcb0110

We had a great Christmas with family! Now to get ready for little one’s arrival. 

I did have my first crazy pregnancy breakdown yesterday! I’m so uncomfortable, my little boy is sitting so low I feel like he’s going to fall out! My first was small, but he’s measuring right on track so a few people told me I look like I’m going to pop already. That, along with my husband being lazy the last couple days because he drank too much Christmas Eve with my dad and his brother, I broke down when my doctor told me I failed my one hour test yesterday. Just frustrated

fatstagnation

My step-mom gave me two boxes of hand me down kids books that my mom had given her when my sister was born (I was 16 then). Some of my own favorites from childhood were in there!  It was so awesome - I didn't even know my mom had given them to her! 

bravoandprosecco

I'm watching "I didn't know I was pregnant " and just amazed so out of curiosity has anyone had no symptoms and not showing?! How does this happen!!!

baybeesunflower

bravoandprosecco said:

I'm watching "I didn't know I was pregnant " and just amazed so out of curiosity has anyone had no symptoms and not showing?! How does this happen!!!

Omg! I legit watched this today while I was my lunch.  I am blown away that they had such little body changes to alert them they were pregnant I look like a giant balloon!!!

mdfarmchick

@ashleyf911 which diaper bag did you pick? I went back and forth and finally ordered the Be Prepared today and now I can’t wait for it to get here so I can organize it. Lol. 

We we had a great Christmas; MH has been home and so I haven’t been on here or Facebook as much. I’m also working on some savings apps and other things to save money.  

My favorite gift was watching DS open the play kitchen we got him... he’s had so much fun the past couple of days with it. Best gift for me? MH okayed a babysitter for two days and the plan is adult time and Momma-pampering time. Basically pedis, massages, a hair cut and color, eyebrows waxed and a facial... Plus running errands and such without chasing a toddler. I am so happy and relaxed. And DS didn’t cry when we left this morning, but he did cry when our sitter left. Lol.

ashleyf911

@mdfarmchick ahhh, the Be Prepared was my second choice! You'll have to let me know how you like it. I went with the BFF. It's not quite as big, but I'm an overpacker so I was worried about making the Be Prepared too heavy, lol.  I'm jealous of your 2 day babysitter, too... I normally do a half day of drop in daycare for DS when I have appointments but it's never quite enough time to get any "me time" stuff done. I might have to smooth talk DH into an extra full day or two before baby comes. 

stardustskies

Anyone else feel like they're getting tanner? I feel tan for the middle of winter. I know melanin is supposed to increase but i was expecting blotchy patches, not an all over tanned look. Weird. 

calecorvus

It just clicked today that I've only got about 5 paychecks left before the baby is here (if she waits for the 15th, lol, ETA is the 13th). That feels so much closer than "2 and a half months" somehow.

ShawnnaO

@calecorvus due date buddies! Also, NO THATS TOO SOON. 

mdfarmchick

@ashleyf911 I was worried I would overpack it but also didn’t want to deal with not having enough space. The deciding factor for me was that we cloth diaper and I just wasn’t sure with two in diapers that the BFF would work. I bought some extra organizers too and a smaller “purse like” version for when I just have DS and not everything for two. I’ll let you know when it gets here how I think it will work for sure. Should be here next week. 

missnc77

Has everyone gone to one of the two Facebook groups now? It's so dead!

ashleyf911

@missnc77 I think that's a big part of the problem.  I was trying to hold out a little longer before joining the new fb group but I might make the switch if that's where everyone else is.

baybeesunflower

missnc77 said:

Has everyone gone to one of the two Facebook groups now? It's so dead!

I've been wondering the same.... it was actually getting chatty again and then they made the 2nd FB group and it's been pretty dead since. I'm not in either group. Yet.

vflux33

@missnc77 Yeah, UO Sunday, I'm really irritated about this. Was exactly what I was worried about. I'm definitely  not going to FB for reasons I've already explained 50 times, and I feel like the second FB exodus kind of ruined this board. I'm hoping this is at least partly a holiday lull, but I have doubts. 

missnc77

@vflux33 This board has always been a bit slower than my previous BMB, but now it's tumble weeds. This was right when my other board was getting good with some great threads leading up to labor - post your nursery, breastfeeding FAQ, etc, along with some hysterical ones. Then post birth before we migrated to FB it was nice to have others up at 2am with a newborn. I haven't been around here enough for the regulars FB group, and I don't know about joining the larger one. I want the support and commiseration, but as I said in the other FB thread, our other group blew up with drama when one mom started talking about calling CPS on another mom. It created cliques and pitted people against each other, and even when that person was kicked out, it still felt like there were two sides.

Fingers crossed it's just the holidays and things will pick back up! 

vflux33

@missnc77 Yeah, it would have been nice to keep things going here at least for 3rd tri plus a few months. This is a shitty time for things to die down here. This is my first BMB, but I bet the experience you had with drama post Facebook migration is super common (though probably the reasons change--that CPS thing sounds pretty intense). 

If this is just a late December lull, that's good. If not, hopefully those of us who stick around can band together into some kind of tighter knit thing. Sucks all those ppl left though. I've been regular enough to miss a lot of the specific people who left and it feels sudden to just not be interacting with them anymore after months of going through this experience together.