On December 6th at 4:15pm, we found out the gender of our sweet baby, and we are thrilled to say ....

IT'S A BOY!

 

 

Because Michael was unable to come back to The United States he had to hear the news after the appointment, but we were both so thrilled to know that Baby Rotundo is in fact, Michael Nicholas Rotundo III. But here comes the hard part, what are we going to call him!?

For almost all of Michael's life, he went by Mikey, until he got older and decided he wanted to be Michael. I call him Michael, but there are still quite a few childhood friends and family that still call him Mikey. Making it difficult to decide what we should call our little bundle of joy to be able to seperate between father and son. We also considered calling him Nicholas or Nick but that was short lived and quickly taken off the table by good 'ole Dad. So after much thought and consideration, we've decided to go with Mikey! The name is ready to be painted on the nursery wall.

 

I've also been doing a TON of shopping these last few days, and I've included some of my favorite finds for our little baby boy!

Oxford Button Up - White - The Children's Place, so cute for dressing baby boy up for a night out!

Buffalo Plain Flannel Shirt - Gymboree, He'll look just like his daddy in this button up!

Snowman Thermal Tee - Gymboree, I couldn't even get enough of this cute thermal!
Wooden Toggle Coat - Gymboree, We bought ours in Navy, but he will look just like a little Michael in his new coat!
Flannel Cuffed Pull-On Jeans - Gymboree, mix-and-match set!
Tow Truck Body Suit - Gymbore, too cute for a baby boy
Blue Stripe Bodysuit - Target, fabulous for those snowy nights in Baumholder
Falls Creek City Fleece Swaddle - Meijer, Falls creek baby bedding
Falls Creek 4-Pack City Swaddles - Meijer, Falls creek baby bedding
Falls Creek Fleece Airplane Baby Blanket - Meijer, Falls creek baby bedding
Falls Creek City Crib Sheet - Meijer, Falls creek baby bedding

God Bless America!

<p dir=ltr>WOW! What a crazy adventure back into The United States. We woke up at 4:30am (10:30pm Ohio time) on December 2nd to get ready to be in Frankfurt by 7:30 for a departing flight of 9:45. After waking up we realized it has snowed a pretty significant amount over night and the roads were icy, slowin g everything down!</p>
<p dir=ltr>We made it to Frankfurt International Airport only to park in the wrong garrage, have to ride the shuttle to Terminal 2 and find our way to the Delta counter, but we did it! After getting boarding passes and checking baggage, it was time for Michael and I to say goodbye. Fingers are still crossed that he will be joining me in this wonderful country soon!</p>
<p dir=ltr>After our sad departure, it was time for me to find the correct gate and wait. I set security off about 5 times but I eventually made it to my gate! We boarded the plane around 9am, only to be told that the plane has not been "winter-ized" and that the flight was delayed. 2 hours later the plane took off, making my 9 hour a flight an 11 hour waiting game. WOW!</p>
<p dir=ltr>Because of the delay in Frankfurt, I had only 30 minutes to make it through customs, baggage recheck, passport security and to the proper gate to catch my connecting flight and I DID IT! but with only 2 minutes to spare. I hit the ground in Indianapolis at about 4:40 and quickly grabbed my carry-on to meet my parents at the baggage claim. Mom cried .... </p>
<p dir=ltr>I was told that my baggage had been sent in on the next flight and would be delivered to my front door today, Monday morning. Good thing I packed clothes in my carry-on! Thankfully they didn't loose my bag, they just couldn't get it on the flight in time so it came in on the next one, and will be delivered shortly.

I slept in the car on the way home from Indianapolis. I had been awake for almost 24 hours. We stopped and ate in Eaton at FRISCHS! Oh my goodness how glorious the bigboy tasted!!!! yumyumyum!

I came home to visit with a few more family members for a few hours and then quickly hit the hay for some much needed rest. It was a wild ride in but I am so happy to be home!

Now for the shopping ...... :)

Nursery Re-do

Michael and I have been spending a ton of time lately preparing the nursery. I know we still have a decent amount of time before the baby arrives to prepare for things like this BUT you never know what the Army might do, so it's better to prepare now while you can than to be stuck doing it by yourself because they sent your soldier to some unknown place for 3 weeks to shoot a gun! So, we've started.

 

Not knowing the gender of the baby makes it difficult at times, but because we have chosen yellows and gray's to stay gender neutral, either way, it works. We also picked out a yellow and gray bedding set, but after thinking about it, how muh yellow and gray can one baby have?! We need a little bit of life in there! So we opted to go with something with a little more color to spice it up a bit.

BEHOLD, THE NEW BEDDING SELECTION ....

It still fits out yellow and gray walls, but the greens and oranges add a bit more color the the place! It's nice that it remains gender neutral as well.

And we found this little gem with the help of my mom, thank's Mom!

 

This little blanket is PRECIOUS and perfect for the bedding set! We have also started making some custom art for the walls, and yes, Michael is even getting a little artistic too! The crib is up and we are just waiting on a few more additions before we are able to reveal the nursery.

 

UP NEXT - COMPLETED NURSERY PHOTOS!

Daddy Appreciation Day!

So many times as I scroll through Pinterest, Facebook, Twitter, or check out a fellow bloggers post, I see a reoccuring trend, Mommy Recognition. Don't get me wrong, I'm all about MomPower, and I am more than happy to praise a great mother, but what about Dad? Dad's don't get as much credit as they deserve, and I know in my house, without my husband and "Dad" I would be quite frankly, psycho!

So I want to dedicate a day as Daddy Appreciation Day!

Here is my fantastic husband and the father of my child ... Michael!

Picture 1: Is "Army" personality, very professional. Picture 2 however, is the complete opposite, this is really Michael, silly and outgoing!
He is so loving, laid back, considerate, kind and without-a-doubt the funniest person I know. I have known this handsome man since I was 4 years old, and from T-Ball days on, he has always been the life of the party! I couldn't ask for a better husband and best friend to build a family with.

BECAUSE Michael is so wonderful, I am creating a Daddy Day Basket, with all of  his favorite things in it (including the new xbox game he has been DYING to have!) Here are some idea's of what to include.
1. XBOX game of the week .... I'm not sure what that is this week so I'll have to do some digging.
2. Beef Jerkey
3. Jameson Whiskey
4. Coca-Cola
5. Packers Playing Cards
6. Miscellaneous Candy (he's a sucker for kitkats!)
7. His favorite magazine
8. A new personalized glass for his Jameson and Coke
9. A "Daddy's Little Cheesehead" Onesie that he can dress our baby up in on gameday.
10. Packers pacifiers to match the onesie
11. Giftcard to McDonald's
12. and finally, a batch of homemade cookies from a recipe that his mom gave me!

I haven't constructed the basket yet, I'm waiting until I find the perfect game before I give him his basket, BUT I'll be sure to post a picture as soon as it's ready!

I wanted to be sure that through all the attention that I am getting for being pregnant, Michael doesn't feel left out or forgotten. He is just as important in the life of our child as I am, and I want him to know that I appreciate him for all that he does to support and love me, and our new family!

The Whiteboard Theif Strikes!

Wow! Has it been awhile since I posted or what?! We have been busy with the holiday season already. Shopping for family and friends and making sure everything arrives on time before December 4th when we will be headed back to America to celebrate the Christmas season with family and friends. We are very much looking forward to that !

On Halloween, I was 13 weeks pregnant, and we were ready for the picture and everything, but the person who had allowed us to borrow the whiteboard needed it back because they are leaving Germany, so the pictures had to stop! :( I immediately ran to the PX to buy another white board, but conveniently enough, the PX is sold out and won't have any until after Christmas. BUMMER! Sorry guys, we were really enjoying the white board count down. We have transfered our energy from the board, to the nursery. I am so excited about decorating the most precious nursery, and Michael has been such a help! We have successfully painted the walls, assembled a crib (which took FOREVER), and hung a few wall decorations in anticipation of finding out if BabyRotundo is wearing bows and bling or trains and trucks! I'm still hoping it's a girl, and Michael is still hoping it's a boy but in less than 4 short weeks we will know for certain.

We will post pictures of the nursery soon! We have almost completed the entire thing, and have made a few major equipment purchases as well. Picture are coming!

I have also started creating a list of all my favorite baby things so far, and I plan to take pictures and post them on here to share with all of you! We have found some of the most precious baby items ever!!!!

As for now, that's all I've got. Michael and I are celebrating a 5-day weekend (hip-hip-horray!) but we have canceled our trip to London. :( We canceled due to inconvenient timing, and plan to travel very, very soon. I hope you all enjoy your days.

Until next time friends!

Practice Makes Perfect

This week, I began substitute teaching at Wetzel Elementry School here on post, and let me tell you, it has been a blast!!! Although my Agricultural Education Degree focuses on a high-school setting, I had no idea how much the youngsters enjoy learning. They are all so excited to be at school everyday, which is a drastic change from the high-school setting that I've been used to. NEVER LOOSE THAT LITTLE KIDDIES!

Within my first week, I have learned so much about the students, what they like, what they don't like, their learning styles and personalities. It's been wonderful. I've worked with the SureStart preschoolers all the way up to the big 6th graders, and each grade in between. I have already learned so much from these little people that I can't wait to finish out the school year with them.

Another great benefit to my new position is all the practice it gives me when parenting. These kids require attention 24 hours a day (or 7 hours in my case) and their everyday trials and triumphs are great insight to what parenting a toddler all the way through childhood years might be like. They say practice makes perfect, and right now, I'm getting lots of practice!

On another note, today marks 12 weeks pregnant! We are almost to the second trimester and looking forward to our upcoming appointments. Baby is growing quickly but the baby bump hasn't shown up yet! Baby is fully formed, all organs are working and s/he weights about 0.5 ounces. WOW, that's small! Approximately 196 days to go before we meet the little bundle of joy!

SO BRING ON THE PICTURE ....

12 weeks, 0 days!
We finally got back on schedule around this place!

How far along? 12 weeks, 0 days!

Baby is the size of a: Prune

Total weight gain/loss: +4 lbs.

The Bump: Nothing exciting yet, but I'm sure there will be some big stuff coming soon!

Symptoms: More energy than before, no symptoms lately (knock on wood!)

Food Cravings: The usual Frisch's Big Boy. Thats a lifetime craving though, nothing new to pregnancy.

Sleep: Normal, finally!

What I miss: Family and friends and the Frisch. (seriously, I have a problem!)

Wedding Ring on or off: On!

Any Names Picked Out: Hadley Anna and Michael Nicholas III.

Gender: Won't know until at least 18 weeks, but we're waiting!

Movement: Too early to tell, but they say baby can kick, and hiccup.

Maternity Clothes: None yet, but I'm looking into it.

Labor Signs: N/A

Best Moment of the Week: Sub teaching with the Kindergarten kiddies was so much fun! That age group is so interesting!

What we are excited about/looking forward to: Gender reveal! And visiting home in December. We will be in London in less than a month so we are excited for that as well! 

11 Weeks {4 days}

11 weeks and 4 days along, ALMOST TO THE SECOND TRIMESTER! The first trimester has been a breeze so far, but I don't want to jinx myself with morning sickness. Our next OBGYN appointment won't be until mid-november ... about 16 weeks along. After that, we will be headed home to visit family and friends the first week of December to celebrate baby and catch up! While we are home we will find out the gender of the baby. We can't wait to share with all of you.



Here's the weekly photo ...

I'm pretty sure I was talking when he took this? ....

How far along? 11 weeks, 4 days.

Baby is the size of a: Lime

Total weight gain/loss: +4 lbs.

The Bump: Still nothing major, but it's coming.

Symptoms: Still no morning sickness, but I pee every 15 minutes and I get more and more restless every night.

Food Cravings: Nothing lately. Milk sounds extra good right now, but that's a first.

Sleep: As often as I can, but the tiredness is wearing off.

What I miss: Family and friends ..... aaaaaand the big boy.

Wedding Ring on or off: on, horray!

Any Names Picked Out: Hadley Anna and Michael Nicholas. Alternate names coming soon!

Gender: Counting down to December 5th ...

Movement: Too early to feel.

Maternity Clothes: Maternity pants on sale at the PX .... woohoo!

Labor Signs: N/A

Best Moment of the Week: Nothing major in babyworld happened this week, HOWEVER I did find the perfect stroller and carseat, and right after that, I found the matching bouncer in a thrift store downtown. That was a score!

What we are excited about/looking forward to: Still looking forward to London, finding out the gender of baby Rotundo and visiting family and friends as soon as possible!

 

Christmas Organization!

During the holiday season it can be difficult to stay organized. Who am I shopping for? What's my budget? I can't remember the recipe for those holiday cookies! It gets overwhelming!!!! Here are a few printables that will help you stay organized during the holiday season!

Enjoy!

Christmas Printables

December 2012 Calendar

Christmas Gift List

Bake It Christmas List

Make It Christmas List

Fun Halloween Printables!

After checking out pinterest (that's all I ever do!) for some fun ideas for gifts for the kids in our building for halloween, I found these fun printables. Enjoy!

 

 

These printables I found here... I thought they were just so cute that I couldn't pass them up!

OCTOBER 2012

FALL FRIENDS TO-DO LIST

HALLOWEEN GIFT TAG

Halloween Subway Art

As the fall holidays roll around, I have been excited to start decorating our house for the occasion. After scanning pinterest for a few ideas, I found a very cool printable that I want to include in this years display. Subway art can be placed in a frame of your choice and is easily interchangable with the seasons!

Enjoy!

Halloween Subway Art

HALLOWEEN SUBWAY ART 16X20

10 weeks { 4 days }

Sorry people, it's been a wild week so I am a little behind on the weekly photos, but don't worry, we won't let it happen again (or we'll try not too!) This week we had our first appointment with an actual doctor, and we were able to experience our first ultrasound!

Hello Baby Rotundo!
It's still a little too early to find out if it's a boy or a girl, but we will be finding out in about 18 to 20 weeks.

And here is the weekly photo ...

10 weeks! Sorry ya'll .... I was not in the picture taking mood this week! But I promise to take a picture for week 11.

and the promised survey every week ....

How far along? 10 weeks, 2 days

Baby is the size of a: Prune (yuck!)

Total weight gain/loss: +0 lbs

The Bump: A very, Very, VERY small sign of a baby bump is starting to show up.

Symptoms: No morning sickness still ...and unlikely to have any! However, I have been much more tired lately and I have some bitchin' headaches. Oh, the joys of pregnancy!

Food Cravings: Still craving meat and some really buttery popcorn. I think Michael and I might make a trip to the movies tonight just for the popcorn :)

Sleep: All the time! I think I actually stayed up until 9pm 1 days this week, other than that, it's pretty much early bedchecks for me!

What I miss: Still dying for Chipotle and Frisch's. Thank god they have Chipotle in London, but Frisch's will have to wait. BOO!

Wedding Ring on or off: Still on, still too big :(

Any Names Picked Out: Still Hadley Anna for a girl but boy names are debatable. Michael Nicholas obviously still stands but we are considering Bryce Thomas or Tristen Thomas.

Gender: Still too early to tell, hopefully finding out in a few short months though!

Movement: Baby is kicking and apparently can hiccup but it's too early for me to feel anything.

Maternity Clothes: I was checking out some stuff online but they aren't necessary yet!

Labor Signs: No. But the sound of the man singing in the house underneath us sounds like he's in labor (does that count?)

Best Moment of the Week: Our first ultrasound. We got to see baby for the first time!

What we are excited about/looking forward to: Going to London. That's not really baby related but it will be our last single trip before baby arrives so we want to enjoy ourselves!

A Day in Idar-Oberstein

Because Monday is Columbus Day (or something?), Michael has a long weekend. YAY! Lucky for him, he is off from Friday-Monday, which leaves us a little more time than usual to get out and explore our new home and all of the beautiful surroundings.

Originally, we were planning to head to a Medieval festival near Idar-Oberstein, however, once we arrived, the festival was a bit less than we expected so we decided to skip out on the festival and check out downtown Idar, which is beautiful. One of the most unique parts about this small town is that there is a church built directly into the side of a mountain overlooking the entire city! It is also one of the largest cities for jewlery making, so we did a bit of window shopping through the street-market (another really common thing in Germany is street vendors and outdoor markets, FABULOUS!) The entire city is beautiful, with tons of buildings, tunnels, churches and shops to take a look at. Here are some of our pictures of the trip ....

After sightseeing in the wonderful city, we took off to a chinese restuarant that my boss is constantly reccomending, China Dinistie (the weirdest spelling ever!) The restuarant is buffet style chinese, and smelled delicious, however, baby R was not a fan of the food, so Michael was the only one who really got to enjoy the food. It was good while it lasted!

Our next major trip will be traveling to London during late November. We finalized reservations today! We will be sure to post as many pictures as we can possibly take of the UK! Hopefully we'll run into some famous people while we're there!

BOY OR GIRL? YOU CHOOSE!

Living in Germany comes with many great perks and benefits, BUT being away from our families and friends can be difficult ... especially during a major life event ... and having a baby is most definitely a major life event! Not only do our friends and family have to miss out on many of the wonderful memories of this time, but we also have to miss out on having a baby shower. BOO! :(

With the help of my FABULOUS mother, we have been able to tentatively plan something from a distance. I've been looking at some fun idea's for a shower as well, and one of my favorite idea's is the Gender Reveal Party. Michael and I won't be home before we know the gender of the baby, but we will find out WHILE we are home, allowing us to have a gender reveal baby shower! We thought this might be fun because (1) It's not your typical baby shower (2) We don't have to call all 900 people and tell them what the sex of the baby is (your phone bill can get pretttttty high with international calls!) and (3) Most of the items we like for baby are gender neutral, so it could work! Here are some fun idea's I've seen while "Pinning"

 

Tally your loved one's votes and let everybody pick a side! Reward the winning side with a prize!

 

Very cute props! Mustache for boys and Lips for girls!

 

What a fabulous cake! Very gender neutral.

 

What a great party favor. Simply color HE or SHE with a permanent marker.

 

Very cute ideas for decorations and foods!

 

 

Another very, very unique idea I have found was this fabulous guestbook from Guestbookstore.com

With this website, you can order custom guestbook pages for your guests to fill out, instead of just writing the name! What a fun idea! Here is a sample of the pages that can be ordered ....

 

 

HIHO! HIHO! It's off to the doctor we go!

Hello everyone! As promised, we will post every Wednesday with the newest pregnancy timeline picture, and more information about our experience. It is very important to both Michael and myself that you all feel included in this exciting time for us. We want each and every one of our family members and friends to enjoy this experience with us,  no matter how far away we may be. So .... on with the picture!

Exactly 9 weeks today!
I swear one of these days I will remember to dress appropriately for these pictures.

We had our first OBGYN appointment today at Landstuhl (about 45 minutes from Baumholder) and let me tell you, it was an experience. Not so much because of the appointment, but because the post is so large and it is one of the only American hospitals here in Germany. Finding the post wasn't difficult, HOWEVER, once we got through the gate, we were lost (and the gate guard was absolutely no help!) After about 30 minutes of driving in circles and searching building numbers, we finally found the clinic and arrived for our appointmnt ........ 15 minutes late! :( Lucky for us, the staff was very understanding and helpful.

During the appointment, the nurse told us that I am very healthy, with no risks for the baby. Both my red blood cell and white blood cell count is high, iron and calcium levels are good, and overall we are doing a wonderful job taking care of Baby Rotundo! The clinic gave us a ton of information on classes we can take to learn more about parenting, the birth process, and many other things! Because this appointment was strictly informational, no ultrasound. Sorry folks, but next week, October 10th, we have scheduled our first appointment with a Doctor. During this appointment we will see baby for the first time, hear a heartbeat, and learn more about baby's development. We'll be sure to post an ultrasound photo as soon as we get one :)

We've also decided to include a pregnancy survey each week to talk about what we're feeling and experiencing during this time! Here is a survey we (I) found online ....

• How far along? 9 weeks, 0 days
• Baby is the size of a: Grape! Weighing less than 1 ounce
• Total weight gain/loss: +2 lbs!
• The Bump: Nothing significant yet. They estimate me to start showing somewhere between 3 - 4 months, so in a few more weeks I'll be showing some signs of a baby in there!
• Symptoms: No morning sickness still! (Fingers are crossed for that to hold off!) My eating habits have changed as well, I am eating much more than I was before, and finding myself drawn to anything with meat in it (gross!)
• Food Cravings: Like I said before, meat. Sometimes sweets, which is strange because I have never been a big sweet eater, and lots and lots of milk! I've been staying away from deli meats, but sometimes it's pretty difficult to pass subway up.
• Sleep: I've been sleeping a lot lately. Some nights I can go to bed at 6pm and not wake up until 6am the next day!!!! I don't feel overly tired but once we begin to wind down for the day, I feel exhausted!
• What I miss: Nothing yet, except Chipotle and Frisch's .... but that has nothing to do with pregnancy!
• Wedding Ring on or off: On! I doubt I'll ever have to take mine off, since it's already a little too big. Yay!
• Any Names Picked Out: Yes, that was very easy for us! We have picked out 2 boy names and 2 girl names. For a boy - Michael Nicholas III or Abel Thomas. For a girl - Hadley Anna or Kendell Nicole.   * Funny story, Michael's middle name is Nicholas and my middle name is Nicole, so we had to incorporate that in some way!* 
• Gender: Don't know yet. I don't want to find out, but Michael does. We will be able to tell around 20 weeks during our Anatomy Screening. (December 5thish)
• Movement: Too soon to tell!
• Maternity Clothes: Not yet. Hopefully never, but the PX does sell some pretty cute stuff!
• Labor Signs: Good lord I hope not!
• Best Moment of the Week: Our appointment today! Michael told me that he felt much better after our visit to the clinic. After being told I was healthy and baby was doing great made us both feel much better.
• What we are excited about/looking forward to: Our next appointment/First Ultrasound. Michael is also very excited to find out the sex of the baby (he's hoping for a boy!)

The Pregnancy Project

Today I am 8 weeks pregnant, and after much pinning, Michael and I have developed our own little Pregnancy Project (more me, less Michael, but you know what I mean!) We are going to track my pregnancy, week by week, through pictures and a little creativity, of course. Every week I will take a picture next to a white board documenting how many weeks along I am, and what I am experiencing during this week of pregnancy. After all the photo's are complied, we will have a visual timeline of our very first pregnancy, and a wonderful timeline for our family members and friends who can't experience this time with us.

 

So we started this week!

 

During week 8 of pregnancy, I can say that I'm missing chipotle more than ever, and Frisch's is still my favorite place in the world (but not much has changed there!) Our first appointment is October 3rd at Landstuhl, and we will have our first tour of the hospital. We will not be meeting with a doctor, but will be going through processing. After this appointment is complete, we will be ready to schedule our first appointment with an OBGYN, and our first ultrasound will be during our next appointment!!!!! Don't worry family, we get unlimited prints so we will be sure to mail them all home!

 

When I asked Michael how he was feeling within the first 8 weeks of pregnancy, he says "uhhhhh? very excited! but stressed, because I know the stresses of pregnancy are coming soon for you." WHAT A CONSIDERATE BOY!

 

More updates to come soon folks! Love and miss you all!

Baby! Baby! Baby!

Hello all!

It's been quite awhile since Michael and I have posted, however, we've been awfully busy! In the last few weeks, Michael has been playing in a Flag Football Tournament here on post. The final game is this evening. If they win, they will then move on the the championship! Good luck 504 Company!!!! Also, we have been planning a few new travels. We plan to fly to London in October, and visit the Black Forest by the end of this month!

We recently recieved some big news! We are having a baby! We found on on Friday, September 14th that I am 6 weeks and 2 days along. My estimated due date is May 7th, which is my grandfather, Tom's, birthday! As of today, I am 7 weeks and 1 day. We have been attending informational appointments here at Baumholder, and later next week, we will be attending appointments at Landstuhl, the hospital where we will deliver! We will be sure to keep everyone up to date on this exciting news!!!

We love and miss you all, and promise to keep our blog up-to-date!

TRIER!

This weekend we traveled to the oldest town in Germany. Trier, Germany is the first town built by the Romans, 1,300 years before Rome! This is the most beautiful city, full of history and culture. As we walked down the street we saw building after building that was beautifully constructed with such fine details. The streets were cobblestone and vendors filled the streets and sidewalks. A daily farmer's market took place in the courtyard and across the street was a beautiful Catholic church that was open for tours. The church was breathtaking and we probably spent 2 hours inside the church alone!

We also visited the porta nigra, the oldest standing Roman gate! The gate was HUGE, and we wanted to buy tickets to walk around the inside of the gate, but the ticket desk was closed. :( We also were able to stand at the base of the very FIRST fountain ever built, and do a little shopping while in town. Along the streets people sat outside reading books, putting on shows along the street, selling wire sculptures, paintings and playing the violin. THE CITY WAS BEAUTIFUL!!!