Thursday, December 27, 2012

27 weeks 5 days

Today was the monthly appointment with the OB.

My BP: Normal 
Baby Derrick's heartbeat: normal 
Fundal Height: 27cm- right on schedule with the pregnancy
My weight: 138 lbs- No weight gain since four weeks ago! :\

I eat as much as I can, as frequently as I can, and yet, no weight gain! So I got worried, but the doctor wasn't one bit worried because my fundal height was right on schedule with the pregnancy. The way fundal height is measured is from the top of your uterus to the bottom- doc pokes around the abdomen until she finds the top (mine was just below my rib cage), and then takes a measuring tape and goes just above the pubic bone. Today I measured a little over 27cm, which according to the chart, baby Derrick is growing well, right between 75-90 percentile. So- no worries.


However, when the doctor did a quick urine sample test, she found out I had low hemoglobin levels- she told me to get OTC iron supplements, 'ferrous sulfate' pills. She said I should take one pill in the morning and one pill at night, and I should be ok. No wonder I felt dizzy all the time- I had low hemoglobin levels. Other than that, I'm fine, the baby is fine, and we just have to wait until he's ready to come meet us!

Since we only have 2 more days left until our final trimester, here are the baby bump pics during 2nd trimester, since it popped out :]
Here it is- it's so interesting to see the progression of my growing belly :] This just means baby Derrick is growing well inside my belly.

Until the next post, keep us in your prayers, and here is a Bible verse that made me re-confirm that baby Derrick truly is a perfect gift from God. 










Friday, December 21, 2012

More baby products!

Husband's picks and purchases are arriving one by one! 
I updated the products that have arrived so far two days ago, and now more purchases are here!
All products purchased through diapers.com

Bugaboo Cameleon 3 stroller Neon Special, Peg Perego Siesta, BabyHome Dream Baby Cot, Peg Perego Primo Viaggio SIP 30/30



The much coveted Bugaboo stroller! We wanted this brand ever since we found out we were pregnant and we love the neon edition! So functional, easy to use, and it will cater to our baby's growth perfectly. The adapter we bought for the Peg Perego car seat works so well into the frame!

The siesta was such a great buy by the husband. It can be used as a infant seat, or a high chair with food tray for toddlers... great safety locks and wheels for rolling, and it seems so useful!

BabyHome baby cot- something we can rest baby Derrick in while we watch TV or relax, or just to keep him off the floor where the dog is...

Peg Perego car seat. A bit on the heavy side, but it seems so sturdy and safe! We both agree that safety outweighs the weight of the seat.

Now for the furniture...



 The husband put the crib together and it looks beautiful! The mattress can be adjusted to cater to the baby's growth. Looks simple and very classy.

Colgate Crib Mattress, Changing station 

It's organic, and also functional since one side is for newborns, and once the baby grows up, we can flip the mattress and it'll be softer!
And the changing station will go on top of the changing station dresser, which is not here yet, but it's very nice and safe with safety belt.

Bookshelf
Not too high, and heavy enough so that if the baby decides to stand, it'll withstand his weight. it's cute and functional since it has a pull out drawer cubby and regular cubby!

And kudos for the husband for ordering these a little earlier than most people think is necessary. It gives us time to figure out the mechanisms here and there, and gives us time to think about where to arrange what furniture where, and also where we will store them. It'll take some time to finalize everything :]

I hope baby Derrick likes his things, because we sure do :]


Thursday, December 20, 2012

The Nursery Preparation

We are now 26 weeks and 3 days into our pregnancy with Baby Derrick, which gives us only one week more in 2nd trimester, and we will be finally entering our last trimester! MY HOW TIME FLIES!

Many things have happened since the last post, which was actually two weeks ago, so this may turn out to be a long post :]

Two weeks ago, hubby started to clean out our office for Baby Derrick's nursery. 
I helped with little things here and there, but he did most of the heavy work... Bye Bye office space, and hello nursery!

Then Grandma and Grandpa Kim from Korea were visiting, and they helped paint the nursery. I believe the color is Lemon Green from Behr. We were at Home Depot picking out paint colors, and one random lady said, get bunch of sample paint, and choose one after, because it looks different with the flooring and the lighting at our house. She was right! It took us at least four different samples.
Of course Guinness our dog and I stayed clear from the room, with the fumes and all. But huge thanks to Grandma and Grandpa Kim and of course my dear husband. 


First we tried the samples on the wall- as you can see from the picture above- then, they lined the floor with paper to catch any falling paint when the walls are painted.
Then the base boards and all the outlets were taped with painter's tape, so we won't get any paint over them, and let the painting begin! Grandma Kim rolled up her sleeves to paint!
Husband was on a roll! Derrick's Daddy instincts kicked in I guess? :] put a smile on my face.
Even Grandpa Kim got on the ladder to get working! :]
After HOURS of hard work, the nursery looked amazing.
And we love it: hopefully, Baby Derrick loves it too :]
Grandma and Grandpa Kim also bought us an adorable holiday keepsake!
 Also, Grandma and Grandpa Kim from Chicago are funding our nursery preparation; we have a $6000 limit! We feel so blessed and thankful that the two Grandma Kims and Grandpa Kims are well and can help us out.We can't thank them enough.

The husband has been behind all the furniture-baby necessities-electronics shopping, so I had really no idea what we purchased until they started arriving one by one! Here are the products that have arrived so far. One side note, all the products were purchased through diapers.com;  apparently husband liked this site because it had great reviews from parents around the nation, and you can get discounts. 


Husband says this had the best reviews for the infant carriers. So it looks really small out of the box, but it has an infant insert that looks like a tiny cocoon, with a sturdy head rest, and it seems like a little swaddling bundle, and it fits snuggly inside the carrier. Once the baby grows a bit the insert can be taken out, and the baby can be carried just in the carrier. However, the baby probably will grow out of it by month 6 at most. 


Talk about high-tech! This baby monitor can be maneuvered to see the baby at all angles, the screen has the controls for moving and controlling the camera angles. The screen shows the image in color, and it also has a sound receiver, but also sound transmitter. So when the baby cries, we can turn the mic on, transmit the sound, and soothe the baby, until one of us gets to the nursery. Also, it has calming lullaby function, so you can play the song. It is just really awesome and loaded with all the techy stuff, but also really safe and of course this also had the highest rating of all the baby monitors, according to the husband. 

Since husband wanted a bugaboo stroller, we needed to buy the adapter for the car seat that would fit into the stroller. The car seat he had purchased, which is the peg perego brand, is according to him, the safest and easiest to use, so all we have to have is the adapter, and it'll click in our bugaboo stroller. OK, I don't know what he's saying until I see it done, but I trust his judgment!


So these are some of the 'big' baby stuff that have come our way. We still have 'bigger' baby stuff coming our way, but the 'small' stuff such as onesies, socks, hats, and clothes, we will put on our registry and hopefully our guests for the baby shower will buy them for us :]

Husband is getting more excited than me, but I love how involved he is. He is always looking at reviews of products and such-I could really care less. I'm more into buying books right now, we already have 12 books- Classic Dr Seuss, Shel Silverstein, Sendak, Munsch.. I am still looking into buying 365 days Bible story book. But first I want to go check out my local library and see if they have it and read it before I purchase it :] Anyway, I love how we balance each other like this, safety of the products is just as important as education and brain development :] 

This is the end of the two week journey! Next week will be busy as well, what with Christmas and the next OB appointment coming up. We ask that you continue to keep us in your prayers, and the Kim family wish you a Happy and Merry Christmas!











Tuesday, December 4, 2012

the nesting starts!

Today marks 24 weeks and 2 days for this pregnancy. 
Ever since I entered my 2nd trimester, I've been very 'domestic'- meaning, I have the urge to do dishes, (RARELY happens), keep our walk in closet clean, constantly do laundry, and do projects. Even the husband noticed the change in behavior.
Husband: "is this your maternal instinct kicking in?"
me: "I think this is what they call nesting"

So I did some research on nesting, and apparently it amplifies in third trimester especially right before you're about to give birth, and those behaviors are some off the wall ones like cleaning the bathroom grout with a tooth brush.

I'm not quite there yet, but I have been making projects for myself and trying to finish them all. This, as a result, is making husband do things he never did growing up, and I think he secretly likes it :]

Project #1: Putting the Christmas Tree up

This wouldn't have been much of a 'project' since it is the holiday season, but the tree was up since the 15th of November. Yup. I was feeling the holiday spirit since then. So the husband, who's never had a Christmas tree growing up, got pretty excited himself. We decided we were going to do fake ones until our dog learned not to eat stuff off the floor, which probably would be never, but the real tree will come around eventually :]
I seriously think the husband had more fun decorating the tree than I did. Anyway, it's beautiful. Project #1 completed. 

Project #2: Knitting a scarf for the sister (still in progress)

Started this project beginning of November, and is still ongoing. I've been working on it little by little, still haven't finished it... hope this keeps her warm in cold Finland. But more importantly, I must finish this before the parents come so they can take it with with them when they visit her this Christmas!


Project #3: Christmas stockings for the fire place










This took 3 full days! This may be due to the lack of a sewing machine, but also because I got tired of sitting in one spot for more than an hour. But they turned out great, and the husband secretly loves them.

Project #4: Holiday Card writing

Started these after Thanksgiving, and FINALLY they are all stamped and ready to go! This year we just personalized the stamps, but once Baby Derrick comes, we will make customized family cards! Can't wait! Also realized: I'm getting to that age where most of the cards are addressed to the Yang family or Mr and Mrs Kwon. My friends are growing up and so is our family!!

These are the ones that I have started and accomplished so far, and I'm pretty sure I'll think of more projects to do. I'm thinking gingerbread house, and cookies... :]

And here's a little something I came across when I was doing my daily bible reading for Baby Derrick.


This pretty much sums it all up- doesn't it?

Until next time, keep us in your prayers! More to come!