Happy Nine Months Little Man!

Yesterday marked an exciting day in the Ninaber household.

Our little man turned 9 months old! And as of today, he has officially been on the outside world longer than the inside with me.

These last nine months have been an absolute whirlwind. I remember when I was pregnant thinking, "This is the longest nine months of my life" and thought the pregnancy would never end.

Alas, it did, and we were blessed with this wonderful baby boy. This baby though, has somehow changed in the past few weeks and has turned in to a toddling little man. He pulls himself up on anything and everything, crawls all over the place, and tires himself out by chasing the Roomba throughout the house (our robot vacuum).

He has three teeth, with three more about to pop through. But the funny thing is that the top teeth that have come through are the top sides, not the front. Makes for a pretty cute smile.

He loves to eat his cottage cheese, red peppers and celery, but he doesn't like cucumber ... surprise, surprise (the apple doesn't fall far from the tree!).

His favourite words are "Ababa baba" (bottle) and "Mummm mum mum mum" (self explanatory!)

He loves his bath time.

He's quite the mommas boy, but when daddy walks in to the room, the smile that radiates from his chubby little cherub face is unreal. He loves his dad.

He looks just like his grandpa.

His best furry friend is Hank. Every morning when he wakes up, Hank walks in to his room with us. As soon as Ryder hears him, he will continue to look around the room until he finds him and once again, beams with his amazingly contagious smile. The two of them like to keep watch over the neighbourhood in the morning. I can already tell they will be best friends.

Only three more months and this munchkin will be celebrating his FIRST BIRTHDAY! Ahh. I'm hoping these next three months slow down, because I'm not quite sure I'm prepared or ready for that day.

If there's one thing I've learned in my first nine months of being a mom, it is to not wish the time away. I've done my best to enjoy each stage we are in, as already there are little things that I have begun to miss.

Already I miss his tiny little 8lb self, when he'd cuddle up on my chest and just slept.
I miss when I could change his bum without worrying that he'd flip over and get poop everywhere.
I miss putting him in his swing and he'd sleep throughout the day.
I miss him playing on his play mat ... and if I had to leave the room, I knew he'd still be in the exact same spot when I came back
I miss nursing him 8-12 times a day (believe it or not) and just getting to bond with him as he rubbed my arm or he'd stretch up and play with my face and hair. Then he'd give me the perfect little grin.

Now, I love hearing him laugh. It's contagious.
I love watching his spirit of adventure.
I love seeing his determination and how he doesn't give up.
I love the claps and smiles he gives when the people he loves walk in to the room.
I love that he doesn't play strange.
I love the hundreds of expressions he shows me everyday
I love being the first one to experience all of his "firsts"
I love being his mom.

Man, if I'm this sappy at his nine month birthday, heaven knows what I'll be like when he turns one.

Happy Nine Months, Little Man. Mumm mum mum mum loves you!

What to Expect When You're Expecting - While Expecting

The other night, my dear husband and I decided to venture out to what may very well be one of our last movie theatre dates as a single/married couple. So we thought, "What better way to celebrate one of our last movies without a babysitter at home than watch What to Expect While You're Expecting?"

We laughed at the thought, but continued on our journey (in our Journey!) to our favourite theatre, Empire on the Boardwalk in Waterloo.

Once there, we went in line to grab some popcorn and our tickets. As I stood in line, I noticed the lady in front of me watching my and talking quietly to her friend. She turned around and continued to tell me how wonderful I looked with my baby bump and began reminiscing about her pregnancy 20+ years ago. I was slightly weirded out, only because she kept staring at my belly. I was just waiting for her hand to reach out and rub it like it was a crystal ball. Well, my belly is definitely no crystal ball, let me tell you. But I could guarantee that I would show her her future if she came anywhere within 10 feet of me and my tummy,  as I mentally prepared to swat her hand from here to Timbuktu.

Thankfully, I was able to get my popcorn in peace, with no tummy rub upsets.

For those of you who have not heard of What to Expect When You're Expecting, where have you been?? I have been waiting since the beginning of this year for this movie to come out when my friend Jessica from FlatsAreForQuitters.com sent me the trailer. The movie is based on the best selling informational book by the same name, but put into a fictional story.  What to Expect When You're Expecting is "a hilarious and heartfelt big screen comedy about five couples whose intertwined lives are turned up side down by the challenges of impending parenthood."**

This movie has an all-star cast, starring Cameron Diaz, Jennifer Lopez, Chris Rock, Elizabeth Banks, Chace Crawford, Anna Kendrick, Dennis Quaid and Joe Manganiello, just to name a few. I honestly don't believe they could've done a better job casting this movie. All the actors were fantastic.

I will try to give you my review of this movie without spoiling anything, but for those of you who haven't seen it, well, I absolutely loved it. And if you're pregnant (or have had babies in the past 5-10 years), even better, as you can probably relate to exactly what they are going through [or at least some of it]. But be prepared with some Kleenex, something I wish someone had told me to bring.

This movie had me laughing hysterically at parts, as they covered almost every single aspect a pregnant woman would experience during her pregnancy. They also cover what it's like to be a dad and the things dads go through during pregnancy and child-rearing.

What I wasn't prepared for, though, was the part where they all go in to labour. It started out great, I was laughing as all the women were rushed to the hospital (because of the way they set the scenes, obviously). But then all of a sudden, once those babies were all born, I began to put myself in the room, realizing that in just a few days/weeks, that will be me, holding my own baby.

It started with just a few tears trickling down my cheeks. I tried to subtly dab the corners of my eyes so that no one would notice I was choking up. Then the scenes became so much more emotional and touching that I started sobbing.

I had no Kleenex. No leftover napkins. Not even a sleeve I could wipe my face on. I was a mess.

I was just starting to compose myself when Matt leaned over to me and said "Just remember, you still have to walk out of here!"

I leaned in to his arm, and what was supposed to be a quiet "I know!" and a chuckle, turned into a wail at one of the most touching parts. "I KNOOWWWW" is what came out, so loud the entire theatre could hear me. I started choking back sobs, and laughter, all at the same time, and lost my composure altogether. Matt lost it too, laughing and telling me that I sounded like a slaughtered pig, literally, which only made things worse. I don't think I have ever heard such a horrendous sound come out of my mouth before.

This could possibly be classed as one of the most hilarious, yet humiliating times of my life. I can only imagine what was going through people's minds as they laughed at the gianormous pregnant lady slumped down and bawling her eyes out in the 6th row, yet laughing at the same time and fanning herself repeatedly.

Once the credits started rolling, I couldn't get out of that theatre fast enough. I literally grabbed my purse and bolted, ready to take out anyone that stood in my way as I ran to the washroom in an effort to compose myself.

I'll admit, it was basically impossible. My face was the colour of a tomato. My makeup practically gone, as it had run all down my face, and I was sweating so bad from my laughter/crying combination that my hair had gone completely limp and was plastered to my head. I walked out of the stall with my eyes downcast, refusing to make eye contact with any other lady in the washroom, only to walk out and see Matt burst in to laughter at the sight of me.

This, folks, is what to expect watching a romantic comedy about pregnancy when you're expecting.

I will admit, I wouldn't change it for the world. I still had an amazing time watching it with an amazing man. And I think it was probably one of the best ways to celebrate our journey in to parenthood.

Now here's hoping the same thing doesn't happen at the hospital when I go in to labour!!




** Synopsis taken from http://whattoexpectthefilm.com/

25 weeks in Mexico

Two weeks ago, Matt and I had the great opportunity to travel to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, to relax in the sand and sun, and marvel in the fact that we were on our Babymoon - celebrating one of the last vacations we will have kid-less.

Although we don't have many pictures from our trip (we misplaced our camera charger), we were able to get some pictures done by a friend at the resort to document our time together, as well as my pregnancy.

Seeing that I haven't posted belly pics in quite some time, I thought some of you might enjoy these. Although I am currently 27 weeks (and bigger now than I was two weeks ago), this is me at 25 weeks.

Let me know what you think!

Welcome to the Family!

Well, a few months ago Matt and I welcomed a new member to our family. His name is Hank and at the time he was a 9 week old chocolate lab. Our little baby has grown up and we just celebrated his 8 month birthday last week. Where has the time gone?? Our little baby has grown into a man. If time flies this fast with a puppy, I can only imagine what life will be like as our family begins to expand.

Oh wait. Did I forget to tell you? It looks like time is going to start flying even faster, as Matt and I will be welcoming a new addition to our family this coming June 2012.

Yes. That's right. I'm about to become a mom ... and Matt's going to be a dad ... for real.

Probably one of the craziest feelings ever. Knowing that there's a new, little life growing inside of me right now. It wasn't until yesterday that it became even more real, when Matt and I went for our first ultrasound and had the opportunity to see our baby for the first time.

It doesn't matter how many ultrasounds you see, whether they're your friends, or people in your family. It completely changes when it's your own. Quite emotional, actually. More so than either of us expected.

And hearing the heartbeat for the first time .... unreal.

Anyway, we're so excited to become parents and to finally be able to share it with family and friends. I think if my family had to wait much longer to tell, they may just burst. So here is your permission to tell the world!

Life has been fully of changes lately, with the news of the little one, my placement in Toronto, and a bunch of random other things, but bring it on! I'm ready for a change :)

Oh, and it looks like my 25 before 25 is going to be due for a little change up ... but that's another post all together!

Let the mommy blogs begin!

Etsy Love

I was randomly searching Etsy yesterday, and the knitter in me wanted to see what people are selling their scarves and other knitted items for.

Well I came across something called an Egg Pod - probably one of the most adorable things I have ever seen knit before.  They're basically "photo props" for newborn babies. I could keep trying to describe them, but words don't do them justice.  All of the pods are created by DarnFanciful on Etsy. Take a look for yourself!

The stork pouch is my favourite! Hmm...maybe a gift idea for all those new moms out there?