Meal Plan Monday

• Monday: Chicken n' Dumplins in the Crock Pot
• Tuesday: Baked Salmon, Couscous and Green Beans
• Wednesday: Dinner at Dustin's
• Thursday: One Dish Chicken Bake
• Friday: Not sure (Anniversary but Mr.Pate is working...)
• Saturday: Homemade Pizza

Got any recipes to share??

18 Weeks and Counting....

• How far along: 18 Weeks
• Total Weight Gained: 8 lbs 
• Maternity Clothes: Maternity pants, regular pants with the belly band thing and regular shirts mostly.  
• Sleep: Finally sleeping well!
• Best Moment of the Week(s): Feeling the baby!! Yay! And I love how my youth girls always rub my belly when they see me, I know some women hate that but I love it. 
• Movement: Yep! I have felt a few taps most nights. Cant wait till Mr.Pate can feel it too! 
• Food Cravings: Salmon, mandarin oranges (which I wasnt a fan of before) and nutella (uh oh- are my WW friends reading this?). 
• Food Aversions: None this week. 
• Morning Sickness: Still none so I hope I am past that.  
• Symptoms: Tiredness (but a little better this week I think), nosebleeds, headaches, hungry all the time, thirsty a lot, heartburn!  
• What I miss: The absence of heartburn and energy. 
• What I'm looking forward to: Feb 17th we will hopefully (as long as baby pate cooperates) find out the gender! Our birth classes start in February. Planning the nursery and registering! 
• Other news: I keep reading on my message boards that people hate when other people touch their bellies, but I love it. I have been trying to research baby gear like pumps, car seats, cloth diapers, etc so I am more prepared to register. I find myself rubbing my belly a lot, ha! I just absentmindedly rub it or rest my hands there. Is that weird? 
• Names: 
• Boy name- Griffin Alan Pate 
• Girl name- We decided on Adalay/Adalei/Adelay and now we need to figure out the spelling and a middle name. Progress... 

Milestones:
According to Babycenter.com : Head to rump, your baby is about 5 1/2 inches long (about the length of a bell pepper) and he weighs almost 7 ounces. He's busy flexing his arms and legs — movements that you'll start noticing more and more in the weeks ahead. His blood vessels are visible through his thin skin, and his ears are now in their final position, although they're still standing out from his head a bit. A protective covering of myelin is beginning to form around his nerves, a process that will continue for a year after he's born. If you're having a girl, her uterus and fallopian tubes are formed and in place. If you're having a boy, his genitals are noticeable now, but he may hide them from you during an ultrasound. 

A Tale of a Nursery...

We have two and a half weeks till we find out what the gender of Baby Pate is, but that has not stopped me from constantly thinking about what his or her room will look like. Nurseries are addicting! Ha! So, while nothing has been decided on color or bedding etc, we do have a few things for sure....

This canvas will be our base point for the whole room. It has a funny story really. We bought this picture from Kirkland's last May... I got pregnant in October.... Yep we bought it before we were pregnant. And we were not even specifically trying to have a baby. But I saw it and knew that if I ever had a baby I would want this, so I begged Mr.Pate to let me get it (it was the last one on clearance). We actually bought it the night Mr.Pate's grandma passed away, so it reminds me of her every time I see it and I think thats pretty neat. Anyhow, it is the color scheme that we always gravitate towards in our house and it is babyish but with a modern look to it. Very us. I LOVE IT!! And it has funny animals like a---

 Narwhal! Ha!

We also recently bought these two pieces from Kirklands bc they were on clearance and seemed to fit.

So thats a sneak peak into the makings of our nursery so far. Colors that are being talked about for the wall are a light yellow, greenish blue or slate blue. I have no problem with a blue room for a little girl, but I am not sure the rest of the world agrees with that. We shall see!

Guess what...

I have felt Baby Pate kick or move!! I mentioned earlier in the week that I thought I had felt movement, but I just wasn't sure that that's what it was. Well for the last three nights I felt the same little tap-tap-tap in the same spot of my lower abdomen (close to where we have heard te heartbeat). Last night I knew this was not some muscle twitch or anything else, this was our baby!! It is pretty exciting. It was a very small thing and I have only felt it when I lay down or get super still at night (last night it was during youth group- baby was learning ha!), but it is still exciting. I can't wait till it's more of a noticeable movement and one Mr.Pate can feel!!


- Mrs.Pate via my iPhone

The random thoughts

* I wore a bellyband for the first time today. I think it feels incredibly weird to have your pants unbuttoned! But it kept my pants up and was fairly comfy. I am hopeful I'll be able to wear a few of my regular pants for awhile now.
* WKU started the Spring semester this week. So far it's been busy, but not crazy in my office. I suspect it will get nuts around next week.
* The Preston Center (the gym my office is in) itself has been nuts! I think it's funny how many students workout so hard just for spring break and then they never come again.
* I was an overachiever today and did a toning DVD this morning plus cardio at lunch. And now I am sore! Ha!
* Just realized that we haven't thought of any middle names if it's a girl. Any ideas?
* I have the sweetest hubby ever! He has been so great during this pregnancy! Thanks babe!!

- Mrs.Pate via my iPhone

Cute Cute Cute!

I have a new addiction (a few really) called Project Nursery. You get to see real people's nursery's. Its very addicting. Anyhow, this is one of the cutest girly rooms I have seen! We will be going in the gender neutral more modern direction because that's just our style, but how cute is this room??

Project Nursery: "Hope" Crib Vignette

17 Weeks and Counting....

• How far along: 17 Weeks
• Total Weight Gained: 7 or 8 lbs so far
• Maternity Clothes: Maternity pants, regular pants with rubber bands and regular shirts. 
• Sleep: I need some! Ha! I am sleeping well when I go to sleep, but I just need more sleep!! So tired! 
• Best Moment of the Week(s): Probably today when Mr.Pate and I were actually talking to the baby! Ha! 
• Movement: I think I may have felt something during church today, but I am not sure if it was the baby or my crazy body right now...  
• Food Cravings: Salmon!!! I just really want some. Its one of my fav foods anyhow. 
• Food Aversions: None this week. 
• Morning Sickness: Still none so I hope I am past that.  
• Symptoms: Exhaustion! Still waiting on the burst of energy to kick in with this 2nd trimester. Heartburn, it hasnt been as bad this week though. Peeing all the time. No more nosebleeds this week! Yay! Always hungry!!! 
• What I miss: ENERGY!! This exhaustion is kicking my butt!  
• What I'm looking forward to: Feb 17th we will hopefully (as long as baby pate cooperates) find out the gender! Yay! Our birth classes start in February. Also feeling the baby kick for sure and getting to plan the decor for the nursery! 
• Other news: I have started perusing websites for nursery ideas and I think Mr.Pate and I are both on the same page about the direction we want to go. Went to the doctor this week and that went well, except I think my doctor thinks I am a dork bc I have a binder with baby stuff organized in it. 
• Names: 
• Boy name- Griffin Alan Pate 
• Top Girl names right now (but no idea really)- 
• Adelae (Pronounce A-da-lay; we dont know the exact spelling we would use but possibly that one or Adelei, Adelay, Adalay...) 
• Sophie 
• Amelia 
• Evie 
• Charlie
• (I think Evie and Adelay are my favs right now)
• We havent really even talked about these anymore, so no progress in this department. 

Milestones: 
According to Babycenter.com, our baby's skeleton is changing from soft cartilage to bone, and the umbilical cord — her lifeline to the placenta — is growing stronger and thicker. Our baby weighs 5 ounces now (about as much as a turnip), and she's around 5 inches long from head to bottom. She can move her joints, and her sweat glands are starting to develop.. (They chose the pronouns, we still dont know the sex, fyi.)

I cant believe it has already been 17 weeks! So far this has flown by.

Ok now, please share any pregnancy wisdom you have with me (or wisdom in general if you have no pregnancy experience)....

Meal Planning it Up!

Here is what we have planned to eat this week (links to some of the recipes found below):

*** Monday: Spaghetti
*** Tuesday: Homemade Pizza
*** Wednesday: Dinner at Dustins
*** Thursday: Porcupine Meatballs ( Church Staff coming over)
*** Friday: Chicken n Dumplins in the Crock pot
*** Saturday: Out with the Thomayer's
*** Sunday: Dinner for 8 potluck at church (I am taking a yummy rice, as long as my sister sends me the recipe!)
Porcupine meatballs

Chicken n Dumplins in the Crock Pot

What are you eating this week?

[Mrs.Pate posted on my iPhone]

Hello, My name is...

Kelly at Kelly's Korner is hosting "Show us your life Friday" again, and this week the theme is "Show us your Singles!" That's right, we are all showcasing our favorite single people in our lives! Ha! She did it last summer and there are actually two couple who met and are now engaged. I figure it is worth a shot, so I want to introduce you (and any new readers from Kelly's blog) to my favorite single....

Dustin- my brother in law. He is the twin of my husband and probably the person Mr.Pate and I spend the most of our time with. He loves the Lord with all his heart and serves the church passionately. Dustin is 28 and lives in Bowling Green, KY. He is a Kindergarten teacher at a local public school and is great at what he does. He loves to make a difference in people's lives, whether it is a student of his, a youth at our church, or a stranger he meets. He teaches Youth Sunday school and small group, and invests in our Youth everyday. He has his Masters in Education and owns his own home. He is a catch! I so want him to find the lady God has for him, someone who will compliment him and challenge him and fit fabulously with our family! So here is to hoping she comes along sooner than later!!!

Doctor doctor, give me the news...

We went for my 16 week check up today at my OB, and all is well. The heartbeat was strong and loud at 166. She was able to find it very quickly and on the opposite side that we found it last week, so I guess baby pate likes to move!

Our doctor was wearing a UK tie, so Mr.Pate told him we would have to get a new doctor. Ha! I am measuring right on time and everything looks good. My doctor did say that if I am already getting strong heartburn then it will probably get pretty bad by the end. So he called in a prescription for nexum and then told me to just compare the price to what I can get over the counter and get the cheapest option. I am probably going to give it a week or two before I start that just to see if I keep getting it bad.

He scheduled our next appointment for Feb 17th- and we will have the ultrasound to find out the gender (as long as baby cooperates!)!!! I can't wait!

Anyone got some good ideas for a gender reveal party? What about creative ways to tell people what you are having?


- Mrs.Pate via my iPhone

16 Weeks and Counting

I actually have a real bump now! Mr.Pate says I am officially over the "beer gut" phase and have a full blown hard rounded bump. Yay! 

• How far along: 16 Weeks
• Total Weight Gained: 6 lbs so far
• Maternity Clothes: Mainly my normal stuff with rubberbands to close the pants (cant button). This week some of my jeans and pants suddenly felt super tight! Mr.Pate laughed at me.  
• Sleep: Well I slept fine all week and think I have maybe gotten used to the no back and stomach thing? I still kinda sleep on my stomach some of the night, but its kinda a strange side stomach thing. 
• Best Moment of the Week(s): We heard the heartbeat! We used the Doppler and actually found it. It was exciting!  
• Movement: Nope, but it should be soon. I am kinda nervous that I wont be able to tell that its the baby and might mistake it for gas or something. We shall see.  
• Food Cravings: Before I never really liked mandarin oranges but now I cant get enough of them! 
• Food Aversions: None this week. 
• Morning Sickness: Still none so I hope I am past that.  
• Symptoms: Fatigue, peeing all the time, a growing mid-section, very sore boobs and shortness of breath, nose bleeds and heartburn! I am not digging the nosebleeds, they just come at the weirdest time! Today we were taking a walk and bam- nosebleed. I had to use my sleeve! Guess I will have to start carrying tissues. 
• What I miss: Not having heartburn and energy!  
• What I'm looking forward to: Our birth classes start in February! Also feeling the baby kick, our next doctor appointment (Jan 18th), and finding out the gender (not until 20ish weeks with my dr.). 
• Other news: We had a DNOW youth event this weekend. It was fabulous, but extremely exhausting. I think it was training for how I will feel with a newborn?? Haha
• Names: 
• Boy name- Griffin Alan Pate 
• Top Girl names right now (but no idea really)- 
• Adelei (Pronounce A-da-lay; we dont know the exact spelling we would use but possibly Adelei, Adelay, Adalay...) 
• Sophie 
• Amelia 
• Evie 
• Charlie
• (I think Evie and Adelay are my favs right now)

Milestones: 
According to Babycenter.com, in the next few weeks, ourr baby will double his weight and add inches to his length. Right now, he's about the size of an avocado: 4 1/2 inches long (head to rump) and 3 1/2 ounces. His legs are much more developed, his head is more erect than it has been, and his eyes have moved closer to the front of his head. His ears are close to their final position, too. The patterning of his scalp has begun, though his locks aren't recognizable yet. He's even started growing toenails. And there's a lot happening inside as well. For example, his heart is now pumping about 25 quarts of blood each day, and this amount will continue to increase as your baby continues to develop. (They chose the pronouns, we still dont know the sex, fyi.)

Oh thyroid, why don't you love me so?

It has been awhile since I have done an update on my thyroid health issues, and I am sure you are all dyin to know about it! Ha!

So before I got pregnant, I was at a great place with my thyroid issues and my insulin resistance was improving. I was seeing a nurse practioner at an endocrinologist's office and loved her!! She was great. Well it just so happened that my regular 3 month visit was coming up shortly, so I would tell them then that I was preggo. I knew it would mean I would have to come more often and that my medicine doses would prob change. What I didn't expect was my beloved doctor to change! Turns out everyone at the office expect the doctor(whom I can't stand) and the office manager left! Weird and not a good sign. So my appoitment was with the new nurse practioner, a male named Blake. I was hoping for the best but knowing it prob wouldn't be good.

As I expected, he immediantly wanted to take me off of my natural thyroid meds and put me on Synthyroid. Some of you may remember how horridly I did on Synthyroid and how much I improved when we changed me over to Naturethroid. So this is not what I wanted to hear. He explained how the medicine worked and acted like I had no clue about my condition. Dude- I have been livin with this for 3 years, I know what my body needs. So our intial appointment started with me informing him that I WOULD NOT be switching medicines. Doctors never like it when you don't let them call the shots. Anyhow, that time my labs looked great and I was good to go.

Over the break I went for my next appointment and I am actually hypothyroid again (meaning I need more) which is too be expected. It seems the baby is stealing all my hormone! Ha! They say the baby will make sure they get all they need and it's you that may starve...

So we raised my dose of medicine. But Blake is so intimidated by my medicine that he had me trying to cut a tiny pill into fourths, when all he had to do was look online and see that they make a pill in that dose that I could add on to what I was taking. So I had to look that up and call him to suggest it, he really dislikes me I am sure!

So this explains why I have been like the walking dead during this pregnancy, it was pregnancy fatigue mixed with thyroid fatigue (your thyroid gives you your engergy and metabolism). Whew! I am looking forward to some energy!!

Anybody know a great endocrinologist in the Nashville area?? One that doesn't live and breathe by synthyroid?? I hate finding a new doctor! Ugh!

- Mrs.Pate via my iPhone

The Exposure Factor

I have long wanted to write some posts about some of the things I learned in my photography class. But explaining photography in a typed blog post is much harder than it sounds. Anyhow, one of the biggest things that had helped me was understanding Aperture, Shutter Speed, and ISO and how the three relate. That is the basis of all pictures. So instead of trying to explain in my limited knowledge, I am giving you two links that I think are super great:

1. Learning About Exposure: This short article helps to explain the 3 elements that make up the exposure of your picture. If you have a DSLR or a digital camera that has a manual setting then read this. It will improve your pics a bunch! 
2. Digital Photography School: This site is super helpful! You can sign up for a weekly newsletter that has tips in it, or just visit the site and learn all kinds of things. If you are trying to improve your skills or learn more about your camera, this is a great resource. 

Out of curiosity, how many of you would like posts about taking better pictures? How many of you have DSLR cameras?

The cost

"Nondiscipleship costs abiding peace, a life penetrated throughout by love, faith that sees everything in the light of God's overriding governance for good, hopefulness that stands firm in the most discouraging of circumstances, power to do what is right and withstand the forces of evil. In short, it costs exactly that abundance of life Jesus said he came to bring (John 10:10)."

--Dallas Willard

This is from my devo time this morning. And I think he hits the nail on the head of exactly what I don't want in life. I have really struggled over the last month with consistency in my quiet times and quality. All I wanted to do was sleep! But the things I want most in life?? They are all of those things in that first sentance that nondiscipleship will cost me.

I didn't officially make a single resolution our goal this year. Have a healthy baby basically. Ha! But my one focus, my one goal is to truely be and act like a disciple of Christ. Not merely a person who claims his name, but someone who is passionate about nothing more than knowing her Lord and Savior! If I manage that, this kid will turn out just fine.

In my devo it gives you exercises to do to try an live out the lesson. One of them today was to memorize this sentance about the cost of nondiscipleship and allow yourself to yearn for peace, love, faith, hopefulness, power, and abundance of life. I could use all of those in my everyday life, how about you?


- Mrs.Pate via my iPhone

Random thoughts

::: We used the Doppler tonight and found the heartbeat!! It was so neat!!
::: I am making Mr. Pates favorite dinner tomorrow night in honor of his bday Wednesday, chicken cordon bleu. Yummy!
::: I have actually cooked like three or four times since the start of 2011, which is pretty impressive for me these days. My fav so far? Porcupine meatballs, which is a recipe from Duke. I love it, it's so yummy!! Try it people, the recipe is on my last MPM post.
::: I am growing very annoyed with how we in the south deal with snow... Like it's a hurricane or something. Today our county cancelled school- without a flake on the ground! Annoying.

That's all I got...


- Mrs.Pate via my iPhone

The tooth story

So I realized that many of you might not stalk me on facebook, so you might be wondering whatever happened with my tooth ordeal last week. After waiting all morning, the specialist squeezed me in to look at my tooth. He said the tooth was very infected and would definitely need a root canal, but he couldn't get me in for one until Monday. So I had two options: 1. He could give me an antibiotic and pain meds and I could bear it out, or 2. He could do the first part today which meant drilling a hole in the tooth to let the infection out. Option two would give me pain relief, option one would give me a little but not much. Duh! Option two please!! So I had a hole drilled into my tooth and they gave me some meds.

I took the meds and went back to work. I should mention that the meds I took were hydracodine, which I happen to be allergic to. The chick at the office convinced me that it had been a long time since I tried it and I may not reall be allergic. so against the better judgement of my husband and mom, I took it.

After being a work a few minutes, I was in the back talking to my boss and a coworker. All of the sudden their voices sounded far away and the next thing I know my boss is catching me as I faint in the floor. Nice. Then they sit me down and fan me and get me water.... Ok I am not feeling so bad. Uh-oh, I got that feeling in your mouth when you know you are going to puke. Dang it! And then I did it, I threw up at work! Ick! And did I mention it was my boss's bday? Happy bday! He and my coworker were so great about it all and took great care of me, it was a blessing. Mr.Pate came and got me and brought me home.... Where I threw up more and he had to cleanup after me and wait on me! But he was so wonderful!!!

So it was a rough day. A horrid day! But once I got that medicine out of my system I was so much better. My tooth felt fine, the whole gave it so much relief! So then I basically did a bunch of warm salt water rinses and waited for today to come.

I had the rest of the root canal today and it went fine. I am just resting up now and can't chew much but that shall pass. Yay for relief! Boo for the price of dental work! Anyone want to contribute to my horrid teeth fund?? : )

- Mrs.Pate via my iPhone

Why I love this week!

::: I get the rest of my root canal on Monday and will be close to done with this tooth mess!
::: Mr.Pate's bday is on Wed (and his twin bro's, dad's, and younger bro-yep all four on the same day).
::: My dad is comin up for a quick visit, I love him.
::: This weekend is DNOW with my Youth!! I am looking forward to quality time with them and getting to see them really focus on their identity in Christ! Yay!

What are you doing this week?

Mrs.Pate via my iPhone

15 Weeks and Counting

• How far along: 15 Weeks
• Total Weight Gained: 5 lbs so far
• Maternity Clothes: Mainly my normal stuff with rubberbands to close the pants (cant button). I wore one pair of maternity pants this week and can tell the belly thing is going to take some getting used to. I am waiting on some other maternity pants to be hemmed (oh the life of a short person!) and still need to get some jeans. I keep meaning to buy one of those belly bands so I can keep wearing my pants, but I just never shop. 
• Sleep: This was a rough week for sleep! First my tooth issue kept me up, then my antibiotic kept me up and then I was up with heartburn! Saturday I fell asleep at 4:30ish.... yep! 
• Best Moment of the Week(s): Probably running errands with Mr.Pate today, we just talked about the baby and names alot. It was a sweet time. 
• Movement: Too early, I still cant feel anything. But it is getting close! 
• Food Cravings: Everything because I couldn't chew all week! I have never craved meat so bad in my life! 
• Food Aversions: None this week. 
• Morning Sickness: As long as I eat every few hours I don't get nauseous. I think this phase has passed and I got off really lucky?? 
• Symptoms: Fatigue, peeing all the time, a growing mid-section, very sore boobs and shortness of breath when I do anything slightly taxing. And new this week- nose bleeds and heartburn! I have never had heartburn in my life, so Friday night I thought I was having a heart attack! I didn't sleep at all. 
• What I miss: Having lots of energy and sleeping well. 
• What I'm looking forward to: Our birth classes start in February! Also feeling the baby kick, our next doctor appointment (Jan 18th), and finding out the gender (not until 20ish weeks with my dr.). 
• Other news: I got my blood work back from my thyroid doctor and I am lacking in thyroid (hypothyroid) again, which is very normal for pregnancy. Baby Pate is stilling all my thyroid hormone! Ha! So this also explains why the exhaustion hit me sooo badly, probably a mix of pregnancy and a lack of thyroid hormone. So we are upping my dose and seeing how that goes. 
• Names: Boy name- Griffin Alan Pate; Top Girl names right now (but no idea really)- Adele, Sophie, Amelia, Genevieve, Evie, Charlie... feel free to give us feedback or ideas in the girl area. 

Milestones: 
According to Babycenter.com, Baby Pate measures 4 inches — about the size of a apple — and he/she weighs 2 & 1/2 ounces. This week's big developments: baby is busy moving amniotic fluid through their nose and upper respiratory tract, which helps the primitive air sacs in their lungs begin to develop; their legs are growing longer than their arms now;  they can move all of their joints and limbs;  eyelids are still fused shut, but they can sense light; and baby is forming taste buds. 

Oouuuuucccchhhh

I am in pain my friends, just flat out pain. It started Saturday night while I was asleep. I woke up with a pain in my lower left teeth. It continued on Sunday but wasn't that bad, just an annoying light pain. On Monday it got worse as the day went. I called and made a dentist appointment for today at 1 pm. Then last night it just got worse and worse. I could no longer chew, it hurt if my tongue touched it, it hurt no matter what. A Whole Bunch!!! I barely slept at all and was in pure misery when I got to work this morning. So I called and the dentist said come on over and they would get me in. A few painful hours later I find out I have an abcess (sp?) tooth and have to have an emergency root canal! Ugh! So now I am sitting in a specialists office waiting for them to try to fit me in. I so hope they are able to end this pain soon. I have literally been in tears all day! It hurts that bad. Ugh!!!! And don't worry, they have spoken with my OB and all is well on that front. Apparantly the 2nd trimester is the one time you can have this stuff done with no problems during pregnancy. Thank you gracious Lord, because if they couldn't do anything for me I am not sure me and baby would make out all that well. Well they are calling me back, so wish me luck!


- Mrs.Pate via my iPhone

14 Weeks and Counting

• How far along: 14 Weeks
• Total Weight Gained: 4 or 5 lbs I think
• Maternity Clothes: I bought 2 pairs of pants this week and am in search of jeans! I also got a few long sleeve shirts that are maternity, but I can still wear my regular stuff too.  
• Sleep: I have been sleeping on my stomach a lot this week, whoops. But they said as long as it doesn't hurt I am fine. I just do not sleep well, but I want to sleep all the time still. 
• Best Moment of the Week(s): Trying on the baby bump at the maternity place, I am so excited for my bump to actually grow! 
• Movement: Too early, I still cant feel anything.  
• Food Cravings: This week I have wanted salmon a bunch, which is kinda normal for me. 
• Food Aversions: None this week. 
• Morning Sickness: As long as I eat every few hours I don't get nauseous. 
• Symptoms: Fatigue, peeing all the time, a growing mid-section, very sore boobs and shortness of breath when I do anything slightly taxing. 
• What I miss: Sleeping soundly! 
• What I'm looking forward to: Looking pregnant, birthing classes, and getting to use the doppler my sis got me to hear the heartbeat whenever I want! 

Milestones: 
According to Babycenter.com, Baby Pate measures 3 1/2 inches — about the size of a lemon — and he/she weighs 1 1/2 ounces. This week's big developments: baby can now squint, frown, grimace, pee, and possibly suck his thumb!