Hospital Survival Kit

How cute is this? What a great baby shower gift, or a just-cuz-you're-about-to-release-a-human gift! Check out this Hospital Survival Kit ideal for mommies - though it could work for anyone who is/will be in the hospital for a few days.

Based on things I've read about pregnancy and birth, I would suggest possibly adding some combination of these:

~*~ magazines

~*~ toilet paper (apparently hospital grade is no good on your sensitive areas)

~*~ eye mask (I'm super light sensitive, esp when I'm in pain)

~*~ cozy socks (just me?)

And don't forget about daddy's needs:

~*~ Gift cards for fast food (babies come at all hours)

~*~ Snacks

~*~ travel mouthwash and/or deodorant

What would you add?

UPDATE: Wow, there are lots of fun survival kits online! Check out two more!

Milan Maternity

Reaves, Party of Four

A quick note on the Reaves kit: as I understand it, the active ingredient in Tylenol PM is a no-no during pregnancy. I *SWEAR* by Unisom (different active ingredient), so I'd use that instead. :)

Birthday Wish List

My head is full of fluff today, and as a result time is creepy-crawling. In order to keep myself awake, I'm going to make a birthday wish list. I know, I know, you all really care what I want for my birthday.

~*~ Tote bag / diaper bag from Retrofied on Etsy - I could use it for a purse for now then switch it to a diaper bag. Her bags are seriously awesome (and pricey). This one is my hands-down favorite.
~*~ Pregnancy massage - desperately need one of these as my back hurts every night and some days.
~*~ A Hitch-Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy - I've never read this book, which seems to be a nerd sin.
~*~ Doctor Who - just about anything DW would please me, but I'd love to have some seasons on DVD (preferably series 2-4)
~*~ Doctor Who t-shirt - This thing is truly spectacular
~*~ Wild Target - excellent movie with an excellent cast
~*~ Shawn of the Dead - somehow I don't own this classic.
~*~ LUSH gift card - or maybe just a few "So White" bath bombs...
~*~ Maternity leggings - I'd need to pick these out, but I think I will really need them coming soon.
~*~ Harry Potter DVDs - Warner Bros. is putting them in the vault next year (all of them) and I only own 3-5.
~*~ Tutti Frutti gift card - hey, I'm easy to please and I only just discovered how MAGICAL it is there!
~*~ Manicure / pedicure - like I said, I'm easy to please...
~*~ Digital camera - can you believe we no longer own a functioning camera? We are a shame to our generation. There's one on our baby registry, so who knows...
~*~ Fingerless gloves - I freakin' love handmade, knitted gloves with no fingers. There are tons on Etsy that I would love.
~*~ Restaurant gift cards - I know it is cliche, but I'm always up for a free meal ;-)

As I think of more I will add to the list. I know you're on the edge of your seat.

Favorite Things Party

I found the cutest Girls Night Out/In idea over on Pizzarie this morning! When I saw the title "A Favorite Things Party", I immediately thought of Oprah, which left me wondering just how budget friendly this is. Each guest commits about $30 for the gifting, and the party would be best with food and/or wine, so it isn't the cheapest night out. It would, however, make a great "Secret Santa" replacement for a group of girl friends and, by that measurement, would be cheaper. Let's take a look!

Each woman picks out five of her favorite can't-live-without-it items (ideally for $6 or less each) to share with the guests. then, through a system of name drawing, they explain each item and what makes it so wonderful, and then they give it to the winner! Check out the link and have a look; it sounds really fun!

Product Review: LUSH Bath Bombs

I felt inspired to write this based on some recent experiences. Enjoy!

So my dear friends Grags convinced me a while back to try a LUSH Bath Bomb, specifically one called Dragon's Egg. She said it was like have beautifully painted fireworks in your bath water. That intrigued me (and slightly confused me) so I gave it a try. She was not kidding! I put it in the water before I got in just to see this impressive show of color, and no lie the surface of the water looked like those fun "marbling" projects you make as a kid! Orange and pink shimmering swirls covered the water's surface, and the room filled with aromas of citrus. I would highly recommend this product, though it is invigorating, so it isn't ideal for hot-bath-before-bed. It makes a great Saturday mid-morning soak before a long, fun day.

Recently I went back to find another one. I take at least one soaking, relaxing bath a week now thanks to sore muscles from pregnancy. I found one called So White that caught my eye/nose because it had bergamot (that wonderful citrus smell in Earl Grey tea) in it. The combined smells leave an apple scent on the nose, and I knew it was for me. It lasts a long time in the bath, giving the water a soft, almost milky feeling and leaving the most tantalizing, inviting smell on your skin for hours. My husband couldn't go five minutes without commenting on how wonderful I smelled! I cannot recommend this one enough. Seriously, I wish I had a big basket of them at home (I suspect it is seasonal, so I may have to stock up)!

I went back a week later to get another So White and the saleswoman convinced me to also purchase a Cinders bomb, based on the idea that using it with the So White would leave me and the room smelling like apple cider, which I love. Once I got home, though, I decided to use them separately, so I could get two baths out of them (more bang for the buck). I used the Cinders alone last night, and I have to say it was a big disappointment. The ball disappears almost instantly, left behind almost no aroma and didn't make my skin feel different/better. The only neat thing about it, and it's small, is that it includes fizzing candy (imagine Pop Rocks) so the water kind of crackles a bit. It is supposed to remind you of a roaring fire, but the effect is pretty small. Perhaps if you used two or three of them in one bath it would be lots of fun, but I'd rather save the money and buy one I know I love.

The moral of this story: go buy me So White bath bombs. Run, don't walk. ;-)

Praying for Miracles

I often feel conflicted about how we are supposed to pray. If we ask God for something, all the while expecting not to get it, that shows a lack of faith. But if we ask for something and expect - even know - that it will happen, that feels like putting God in a box, like some genie in a bottle we can command.

Last night I fell on my knees and prayed for a miracle; a true miracle. My friend Sunday had a brain aneurysm on Sunday and was life-flighted to Baylor Univ Medical Center. By the time I heard about it on Monday he had no brain activity and they were waiting on his family to arrive in order to take him off of life support. The nurses said they had never seen anyone come back from that much damage.

And so Facebook exploded with prayers begging for a miracle.

I begged God to heal Sunday, and I found myself trying to convince Him why it was best for him. Oh, human arrogance... I was so sure it would work because a miracle this big could not be denied - think of the power of that message! It would practically be a modern day Lazarus, and with Sunday's popularity the story would have spread across the world quickly.

A few hours later I found out that Sunday had passed. I was determined to have faith in the miracle I requested, but also to accept any outcome as God's will. Praying for a miracle often feels helpless, and prayer should never feel hopeless.

One miracle I can say I witnessed: I have never seen so many heartfelt prayers and messages in my Facebook feed, and it warmed my aching heart. We don't always get the miracle we asked for, but we usually get one if we open our eyes to see it.

Week 15

I'm almost done with 15 weeks of being preggo. I have to say, so far the second trimester is my favorite. I still don't feel great all of the time, but it is more headache/dizziness and less... tumultuous tummy.

By the way, my mother-in-law has informed me that "men have bellies, mommies have tummies". I thought that was really cute, but if I'm honest, I'll cal it whatever-I-damn-well-please-thank-you-very-much. *^_^*

I'm only just starting to feel like I have a "bump", and it isn't obvious unless I'm wearing something fitted or if my tummy is bare. Every night when I get into pajamas I just kind of stand in front of the mirror, hold my tummy and just stare for a bit. Brad loves it.

My I just take a moment, by the way, to brag about my incredible husband? I don't know that I've ever known a more *thoughtful* man. I am truly blessed to have him and to be his.

I'm taking half a day of work off today to go shopping with the MIL and with Vicki (who still doesn't know because we have had trouble getting a hold of her). We'll lunch and then shop in Pearland; I never really spend time down there, but that main intersection at Mccard has so much STUFF, I'm sure we will keep plenty occupied. ; )

This week at work has been very stressful, and I imagine next week will be as well, though with (hopefully) less late hours. Fingers crossed, prayers said.

That's it for week 15! Next week we have our next 4-week appointment, and then in October we find out the sex! Truly random sidebar: I really prefer to say gender for a numbe rof reasons, but *technically* what we're finding out is the sex. Gender apparently has more to do with the developed understanding of self... or something. I'm still going to call the upcoming shindig a Gender Reveal Party, because inviting your folks to a Sex Party just sounds wrong.

::shudder::

Updates on Life

Wow, I really haven't updated in a while. And what an interesting last post date. Let me try and catch you up.

July 9th we were in Alvin with Brad's family for his uncle's memorial service. This was Alan's sister's husband, whom I had never met and who had been sick a long time. It was a sad event, but tempered by relief at his peace. However, while we were all together, we found out that Alan's brother, Rick, died in New Orleans. It was rather shocking (to most of us), and put an odd air over the day. Thankfully, at least we were all there together to comfort one another.

July 10th Rick's granddaughter was born to Eddie, Rick's son that runs a restaurant outside NOLA.

July 10th is also when we found out I was pregnant.

Weird. Weekend.

So now there's a person growing in my uterus. I'm in the middle of week 13, if I have finally figured out the correct way to measure that stuff. Honestly, it confuses me more than is logical.

Lots of prayer requests on my mind lately, as well.
**My uncle Dennis (dad's brother) was diagnosed with prostate cancer. They caught it really early, and it isn't a "bad case", so most are really optimistic, though frightened.
**My friend Celynda is having thyroid surgery in the next few weeks. She's kinda bummed and kinda scared, so I hope she reaches some peace.
**GRAGS IS ENGAGED!!! She is getting married in March, I believe, which breaks my selfish heart because that's when I'm due so I can't gallivant to Dallas. She wasn't able to make it my wedding, either, so I'm super sad, as is Brad. But life goes on, and that day isn't really about us anyway...

That should be a pretty efficient, though brief, catch up. Wish me luck (AND PRAY FOR US) as baby (and mommy) grows. Yea, panel pants!