15 weeks

Baby is now about 4 inches long and weighs about 2.5 ounces. Her legs are longer than her arms and judging by mommy and daddy's height, they're probably pretty long. :) Although her eyelids are still shut, she can sense outside (of the womb) light and pressure. Mommy can sense an experiment somewhere in here... It's around this time that Baby can begin hearing outside sounds. Perfect timing with school starting up - lots of read-alouds, songs, cheers, and chants! :) We haven't done a whole lot of talking to my belly, but I think this will change relatively quickly as well.

How far along? 15 weeks

Baby's size? an apple (or orange, yuck!)

Total weight gain:  4 pounds
Maternity clothes? I've worn a couple shirts just because I like them, but not because I necessarily need them. I have, however, needed my amazing belly band when wearing some of my shorts and work pants.
Sleep: I'm still sleeping pretty well, minus the trips to the bathroom.
Best moment this past week: We loved seeing how much Baby had grown on Tuesday. We also shared the news with the rest of the world (facebook). Which by the way, how sad is it that we refer to the public or the rest of the world as facebook? What is this world coming to?! Anyhow, it's such a great feeling to get so much love and support.

Miss Anything? sushi!!!
Movement: nope - hopefully soon!
Food cravings: The lemonade is still rocking. my. world.

Anything making you queasy or sick: chicken
Labor Signs:  nope

Gender Prediction: girl 
Symptoms: I sometimes forget the I'm pregnant because everything seems to be going so well and I've been so busy lately, but then I'm quickly reminded by the headaches!!! I'm telling you, this has by far been my worst symptom. Even the nausea (which still isn't 100% gone) isn't as bad as the headaches. They usually last anywhere from 2-8 hours, no joke. It's bad.

Belly Button in or out? in
Wedding rings on or off? on
Happy or Moody most of the time: I've been really happy and without any sort of crazy hormones. :) Although the headaches make me want to rage (and maybe punch someone in the face) at times.
Looking forward to: Meeting all my students!

The belly is still growing away! While my striped picture a couple weeks ago may have appeared as though I'd "popped," I still don't think I've hit that point.

 However! I was walking through the hallway at work the other day and came upon a few giggling students (I'm thinking 6th graders - not my kids!). As I got closer, one couldn't help himself, "SHE THINKS YOU'RE PREGNANT!" I was so, so taken back and didn't know how to respond. What did I do? Giggled at myself and marched my pregnant butt right past them. I was not ready for students to notice! 

I figured last year's kids would see me and notice right away. I was ready for that - on Thursday at our Open House! Not this particular day. I also wasn't ready to tell this year's kids and parents. Looks like I'll be out in the open from the get-go. Awesome.


Happy Monday!! :)

Well, here goes!

We're finally ready to tell the rest of the world our BIG news. While both of our families and all of our friends know, we've still kept it on the DL (down-low for my older friends :). Since we had such a great appointment with Dr. Reuss today, we're ready to share on facebook. I know some people could care less about sharing on the media circuit. We, however, are really excited and so happy to share our wonderful news with the rest of the world!
-- Love, your favorite (and very obvious) FIRST TIME PARENTS :)

Our Announcement

My wording: JP and I are happy to announce that we're expecting a little Baby Mullan in January! 

JP's wording: I'm going to be a dad!! Thanks baby mama, Brittany Mullan.

Really, pumpkin? Really?

This post was edited to put the correct picture, you know, the one with the 2013 due date! :)

Hello, Twenty-Seven!

Saturday was my birthday, so I am officially 27 years old. 

The reason I say "officially" is because I've thought (and maybe
even told a few people) I was 27 for quite some time now. Well, now I am in real life.  
(Remember when we were kids and we said "in real life?" Yeah, my students still say it. I may or may not have a 
friend that still says this same phrase and her name rhymes with Sack. :)

I had a fabulous weekend celebrating. I spent Friday with my in-laws and they definitely spoiled me! I of course failed to take pictures (JP calls it my Baby Brain). However, it was wonderful nonetheless. They decorated and ordered Chinese takeout. We opened presents, ate ice cream cake, and played Apples to Apples. I feel so lucky to have married into such a wonderful family!

Saturday was equally as special. We went out to breakfast and I had a hair appointment. My hair now looks 50 shades of fabulous. :) JP made a yummy pizza for lunch and we spent the rest of the afternoon watching a movie - American Reunion. It was highly inappropriate but definitely funny. He took me out to Teppanyaki for dinner at one of my favorite restaurants, Sapporo. We finished off my PG birthday celebration by playing miniature golf. While JP beat me by two strokes on the first round, I dominated the second round and took the overall win. That's right, friends, I beat JP at golf!! He also got me the best birthday presents! See below.

I spent Sunday night celebrating with my girlfriends. We went out to dinner at California Pizza Kitchen and then to see Magic Mike. While I wanted to see it, I wasn't a crazed baboon and needing to see it opening weekend. There was more of a story line than I expected - I'm not sure if this was a good or bad thing. ;)  We had a great night, but it put me far past my bed time. I had to be back to work by 7:30am this morning and it was HARD. Goodbye summer, hello teacher schedule!

 I took a couple fabulous pictures of my dinner with the girls. The genius in me

forgot to take my memory card out of the computer and put it back into my camera. So, I have the pictures. 

Really, I do. They're on my camera and I can't find the cord to add them here. Baby Brain!

Three birthday celebrations and they're not even over! I will be celebrating with my family on Wednesday. I've had the best birthday and I feel so fortunate and blessed to have such wonderful people in my life. You all mean the world to me!

Finally, I must admit that when envisioning 27, I didn't think I'd be declining the cocktails during my birthday celebration. While most of you know that I definitely enjoy the occasional cocktail or glass of wine, I haven't had a sip since before finding out I was even pregnant. The whole non-drinking thing honestly hasn't even phased me. I'm ready. So, SO ready for this aspect of my life and our sweet little bean is more than worth it. We're starting our little family. I get to be a mother and I couldn't be happier - that itself is the best birthday present I can ask for.

Happy (belated) Birthday to Me!

14 weeks - 2nd trimester!

I'm officially in the 2nd trimester - YAY! 

So, Baby M is doing quite a few things to keep busy in there nowadays. She can pee, squint, frown, and even suck her thumb! Ahh..the life! Kidding. She's about 3 1/2 inches long and weighs 1.5 ounces. Her body  is now growing at a faster rate than her head - thank goodness. Lord knows that Baby doesn't need a bigger head than she's already guaranteed to get based on mommy and daddy's genes! Finally, she's starting to develop lanugo, which is super fine hair that covers her body. Grow away! Baby M needs all the hair she can get - again based on her mommy and daddy's genes. :)

How far along? 14 weeks

Baby's size? a lemon - about the size of your fist!

Total weight gain:  3.5 pounds
Maternity clothes? Not yet!
Sleep: I'm still sleeping pretty well, minus the trips to the bathroom.
Best moment this past week: I spent Friday, Saturday, and Sunday celebrating my birthday with friends and family and loved every moment! I have one more little celebration to go - Wednesday with my family. I feel so blessed to have such wonderful people in my life. Baby M is joining a world filled with love!

Miss Anything? sushi!!!
Movement: nope - hopefully soon!
Food cravings: My obsession with lemonade seems to be getting a bit ridiculous.

Anything making you queasy or sick: chicken
Labor Signs:  nope

Gender Prediction: girl 
Symptoms: The headaches are still frequent. The 14 year old had also resurfaced on my face, which was obviously fabulous. It seems to be fading though and so do the backaches!!! YAY! (knock on wood!)

Belly Button in or out? in
Wedding rings on or off? on
Happy or Moody most of the time: I'm not going to lie, this past week was really rough. I had a great weekend, but the rest of week was full of stress, frustration, exhaustion, and tears. I really need to teach myself how to better handle the pregnancy hormones.
Looking forward to: Our appointment with Dr. Reuss tomorrow and announcing the pregnancy to the rest of the world. :)

Here we have it folks, 14 weeks of belly! Really...14 weeks of thickness. My intestines and whatever other body parts are getting smashed upward make my entire torso expand in every direction! Still learning to adjust with all of these changes as you can see.

Here's what are sweet pea should look like right about now. I can't wait for our ultrasound tomorrow 

to see a real picture (ultrasound) of our baby. :)

Happy Monday!
I officially go back to work today, so we'll see how "happy" it is by the end of the day. ;)

Day Dreaming....

....about our future baby nursery.

I know people call me crazy, but I just know that this little Baby is a girl. Assuming that my intuition is correct, I've begun researching baby nurseries for inspiration. Since we're in the process of house hunting and we plan on being in a new home before the little one arrives (keep your fingers crossed!), we won't start working on a nursery any time soon. However, a girl can dream, right?

Alright, so this is more for a little girl, rather than a baby. However, I love the rustic chic feel. Darling!

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Anyone that knows me knows that I love pink. I adore the super feminine and princess like vibe.

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I am completely and 100% obsessed with stripes. Our nursery, boy or girl, will have at least one wall that has stripes. Simplicity, stripes, pink, and crown molding!? Yes, please! Although I must admit, I've seen nurseries where all 4 walls, top to bottom, are stripes and it's too hard on the eyes.

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More stripes...two completely striped walls, max.

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Pink and grey. Seriously digging this color combo. So pretty!

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If we end up buying brown nursery furniture, I love the purple color combo.

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I love love love a light blend of various shades of pink. So precious and girly, but not over the top. 
I think this nursery may be at the very top of my list!

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This isn't quite as feminine as I'd want a girl nursery to be, but I love the modern, clean feel with a splash of green.

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This nursery seems to have the right amount of pink. It's very bright and airy, yet girly and sophisticated. This one is also at the top of my list.

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I honestly haven't paid attention to baby boy nurseries, but I did come across this alphabet wall. If we have a boy, I think recreating this alphabet wall is an absolute must!

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I have a feeling that deciding on a nursery theme, colors, bedding, decor, toys, frames, furniture,
and paint colors will take the life out of me (and JP!)!

Emmett's Story

A friend of mine recently shared this video on facebook. I've never met this family, but their story is so very touching that I couldn't help but tear up when I read about their sweet little boy, Emmett. Their fighting spirit, strength, and faith in God's plan is truly humbling and inspirational.
Please watch (and educate yourself!).

Emmett's Story

To read more about the severity that swallowing button batteries can cause, you can click here:  

Battery Controlled

Emmett's Survive Story 

Emmett's Blog

Please, friends, educate yourself and watch your children!!

You never know what harm may be lurking around in the most innocent of objects (remote controls, bathroom scales, car remotes, children's toys, and even singing greeting cards). In 2010 there were more than 3,400 cases of children swallowing button batteries. While there were only 19 cases resulting in serious injuries in 2010, some resulted in death.

For All My Baby Mamas

Someone recently shared this song with me and I absolutely love it!

Happy Hump Day, friends!

The Game of Life

I love my husband. 

While he may drive me crazy at times, I fall head over heels in love with him all over again every. single. day. He's sweet, kind, compassionate, calm, and patient. He's incredibly intelligent and kindhearted. He's the most personable, easy-going, and friendliest person I've ever met. Many of these qualities I lack, or at least to an extent, so he makes up for what I'm missing. He compliments me, which I am so incredibly thankful for.

The best part about him? He loves me.

Anyway, enough of the gushy mushy love stuff. It was recently brought to my attention that he's in 

his very own life size version of the Game of Life. Remember that one? The one where you decide how many children you'll have by the turn of a spinner and your career by the flip of a card. Yeah, that one.

JP's on the fast track on this round of Life.

He got married.

He turned 30.

He bought a new car.

He's found out he's having a baby.

He's buying a new home.

He's renting out our current home.

He's making big changes at work.

All in the same year. He sure lucked out on this game, if I do say so myself. :)

13 weeks

I've pretty much finished the first trimester with only a few more days to go (Thursday to be exact). This is definitely a big milestone, as the chance of miscarriage has dropped to 2-3%. Which means we'll also go more public with the pregnancy. Finally! It's been so hard keeping this secret for so long. A good friend of mine didn't find out she was pregnant until 8 weeks, so before she knew it, she was out of the first trimester! We found out at 3 weeks 6 days, so I feel like we've been holding this in foooooorrrreeeevveerrrr (Sandlot, anyone?!). I'm ready for it to be out and in the open!

As for Baby M, she's growing away (as if the picture of me below didn't already give this away!). She's about 3 inches long, weighs an ounce, and her head is slowly but surely become more proportionate to the rest of her body - good-bye Alien Baby! She even has her own fingerprints! If this little baby is a girl (which I'm still willing to bet money on), she now has more than 2 million eggs in her ovaries (eggs she won't be using for at least 35 years!!!!) Finally.....wait for it.. the intestines are now on the inside of her body. Did you know that the intestines begin developing outside of the body in the umbilical cord?! News to me! You (read: I) will be happy to hear that around this time they're truckin' along to their proper home inside of the body. WEIRD.

How far along? 13 weeks

Baby's size? a PEACH! Speaking of peaches, I think I need one. Now.

Total weight gain:  2-3 pounds depending on the day, although I swear it looks like I've gained 10!!
Maternity clothes? Not yet!
Sleep: I'm sleeping well, minus the trips to the bathroom and the back pain.
Best moment this past week: It was putting an offer in on a house we were in love with, until finding out someone accepted the counter given within hours of us dropping off our offer. Boo! Only, we've since found a couple more we're interested in. We'll see what happens!

Miss Anything? still missing my energy :(
Movement: nope!
Food cravings: anything sweet and lemonade

Anything making you queasy or sick: chicken
Labor Signs:  nope

Gender Prediction: girl (noticed, I changed it to prediction)
Symptoms: I'm still nauseous in the morning, but it goes away once I eat something. The biggest frustration is back pain. I almost constantly have a sharp pain near the lower left part of my back.  I've also been getting headaches at night, which I usually try to cure by going to bed.

Belly Button in or out? in
Wedding rings on or off? on
Happy or Moody most of the time: Very happy!
Looking forward to: My birthday on Saturday! I'm not looking forward to this being my last official week of summer vacation though.

Here we have it folks, 13 weeks! I feel like my belly is changing by the minute. It's 
more round as opposed to a little beer-like looking belly, which is great. However, getting 
use to this belly that I've never had is hard y'all! Granted, this was after a big dinner  
(followed by Cold Stone ice cream), but still. Holy Belly!

Uhh, so here's Baby M as of now. I may or may not be the only one that loves
looking at these pictures, so forgive me if you're not a fan. However, since it's my blog, I do what I want. :) 
Look at our precious little bean!

 

A Pregnant Woman's Godsend

While looking at my belly would suggest that I've gained 10 pounds, in reality, I've only gained 2-3 depending on the day. However, my body parts are most certainly filling out. I'm still wearing all of my regular clothes, although some shorts and jeans are a bit more snug if you know what I mean. There's nothing that I want more these days than comfort. So, I give you, The Pregnant Woman's Godsend:

The Beband

found at Target for only $16.99

I imagine I'll have 1,496 more inventions I'll fall in love with throughout my pregnancy and Baby's first year. However, this is my favorite thus far. In case you've never heard of this little gem, it's meant to help a pregnant woman fit into her tighter clothes. You leave the button undone and wrap this little band around the inside and outside of your jeans like you would the top of yoga pants. Uh-mazing! I'd be lying if I said it hasn't been my saving grace this past week. I plan to wear these little babies for as long as possible before having to buy any maternity pants. Don't judge.

What's going on in there?!

Ever since becoming pregnant, this whole baby making process has become very fascinating to me. While I've always thought childbirth was a miracle, the processes a woman's body goes through is quite crazy, magical, frustrating, extraordinary, and amazing!

With each appointment I'm amazed at how much our little bear has grown. With each new fact I read about every week, I am in awe of what my body is capable of. With each new pound I gain, I remind myself how much it will be worth it. With each hormonal outburst, I promise my sweet husband that I won't be like that forever. With every day that passes in which I get nothing accomplished, I promise myself that I'll get more done tomorrow.

Anyhow, I recently came across this video, which I found very intriguing. It's just one more thing that reminds me how hard my body is working and that it's okay to be hormonal, tired, achy, nap everyday, and have no energy. My body is working, friends. HARD!

I definitely recommend checking it out, pregnant or not. CLICK

12 weeks!

3 months. 12 weeks. 84 days. 28 weeks to go. 195 days left.


I've reached the 12 week mark. Some consider this to be the end of the 1st trimester. I think 13 weeks 3 days is more accurate. So, I'm nearing the end of 1st tri and it feels wonderful, mostly just because I'm hoping I fit right into the statistics and become one of the women with endless energy and drive during 2nd tri. I have yet to see this affect taking place on my body.


Baby Mullan is now 2 inches long and ways a half ounce! Her reflexes are in full force - opening and closing her hands, curling her sweet little toes, and making sucking movements with her mouth (starting early, eh?). My favorite part (which I promise has no indication of the type of mother I'll be) is that if I poke and prod at my stomach, Baby Mullan will squirm in response. It's too soon to feel the movements, which is probably a good thing for Baby's sake. I promise that I will not poke and prod my child once she's out of my uterus. :)

How far along? 12 weeks

Baby's size? a plum

Total weight gain:  3 pounds
Maternity clothes? Not yet!
Sleep: I'm still making it through most days without napping. Sleep at night comes and goes. Sometimes it's great, others not so much. I get up way too many times to use the restroom and the internal alarm clock is over-welcoming its stay.
Best moment this past week: We spent the weekend in Flagstaff with my in-laws for my father-in-law's 60th birthday. 80 degree cooler weather, yes please! We honestly had a great weekend and coming back to the 110+ degree weather was not fun.

Miss Anything? my energy!
Movement: nope!
Food cravings: everything sweet

Anything making you queasy or sick: chicken
Labor Signs:  nope

Gender: I'm still banking on a baby girl.
Symptoms: I thought most of my symptoms had disappeared. The nausea has resurfaced a bit in the mornings, I'm super achy, and my back sucks at life. I guess it's not a symptom necessarily, but my growing belly is definitely changing! The shape is a bit different and it's higher. While I wish I was sporting a cute little baby bump, I'm so fascinated by my growing belly!

Belly Button in or out? in
Wedding rings on or off? on
Happy or Moody most of the time: I was much less emotional this week, which I'm sure JP was thrilled about. Overall, very happy!
Looking forward to: 2nd trimester!

The in between stage - the one between normal looking and pregnant that just makes me look like I ate one too many bowls of ice cream (this may or may not be true) isn't pretty.

And this is what Baby M is looking like nowadays. :)

To Believe or Not to Believe....

That is The Question!

Have you heard any of the old, crazy wives tales that predict the gender of your baby? You know, the ones that surely tell you exactly what the little one is going to be depending on the direction in which your wedding ring moves when hung over your pregnant belly? Yeah, those ones.

While I tend to be the typical gullible blonde at times, I hardly doubt these ol' tales are true. However, I obviously had to try them out for myself. Here are my results:

Tale 1: The worse your morning sickness, the more likely you're having a girl. When morning sickness barely or doesn't exist, expect a boy.

Verdict: boy

Tale 2: Place your wedding ring on a piece of string (or one of your precious locks of hair). Hang the wedding ring over the mommy-to-be's belly. If the ring moves back and forth, expect a girl. If it moves in a circular rotation, you can expect a boy.

Verdict: girl

Tale 3: According to the Chinese Gender Chart, you can use your age at the time of conception and the day you conceived to determine the gender of your baby.

Verdict: girl

Tale 4: If a pregnant woman craves sweet things, she's having a girl. If she craves salty or sour foods, she's having a boy.

Verdict: girl

Tale 5: According to some legends, if the heartbeat is 140+ bpm, then you're having a girl. If it's lower, you're having a boy. Although I do question this theory, since the heartbeat isn't necessarily consistent from appointment to appointment.

Verdict: girl (according our our most recent ultrasound)

Tale 6: If going by this joke of an idea, pour a tabelspoon of Drano into a cup of a pregnant woman's pee. If it turns green, she'll have a girl and if it turns blue, she'll have a boy.

Verdict: Did you really think I'd do this one? (I may or may not have added Drano to my shopping list.)

Tale 7: Refer to even and odd numbers. If the woman's age at the time of conception and the year she conceived are both even or odd, then she's having a girl. If one is odd and one is even, she's having a boy.

Verdict: girl

Tale 8: Take a look in the mirror at your complexion. If you're breaking out like a 14 year old going through puberty, legend has it that you're having a girl. She is supposedly stealing her mother's beauty.

Verdict: girl

I personally believe in my own intuition over any of these hocus pocus old wives tales. Although with these statistics (girl-7, boy-1), maybe I'll believe in them just a teeny tiny bit. :)  Not to mention, my intuition also tells me this sweet little baby bear will be a GIRL. We have about 6 more weeks until we'll find out. The end of August couldn't come soon enough.

Happy Independence Day!

...a day late! We were so busy yesterday and I'm pretty sure I was sleep walking up the stairs to get in bed by the time we got home. However, we had a wonderful day celebrating the 4th of July!

We spent the afternoon with family - playing Bags, Bananagrams, drinking

(virgin) strawberry daquries, and eating way too much good food. 

We spent the evening with friends, lighting our own fireworks, watching the ones put 

on at Tempe Town Lake, eating more good food, and swimming. Although, I blame the food 

coma for the lack of pictures during the second half of the day. 

Happy Birthday, America!

 

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11 Weeks

Almost there! Only two more weeks of the 1st trimester. I never thought I'd say this, but I feel like it's flying by!

Despite what this week's ultrasound may have depicted, Baby M is looking less and less like a little alien. While her head it still half of her body, her hands and feet are no longer webbed. Baby M is moving and kicking up a storm, which we were so fortunate to see last week. Although I'm sure she wasn't thrilled to be woken up from her precious little nap by being jabbed with the ultrasound stick (what are those things called, anyway?!). Baby M is also hiccuping. I really, really wish I could feel all of these little movements!

How far along? 11 weeks

Baby's size? a lime

Total weight gain:  1.5-2.5 - it varies daily
Maternity clothes? Not yet!
Sleep: I've been able to make it through most days without a nap, but the internal alarm clock that wakes me up by 7:30 each morning needs to find a new home stat.
Best moment this past week: Our ultrasound!! We were so happy to see Baby M on that little screen, moving and kicking, and WAVING to us! The 170 bpm heartbeat wasn't bad either. :) JP also turned 30, so it was a fun and eventful weekend.

Miss Anything? my energy!
Movement: nope!
Food cravings: Fruit! Bananas, strawberries, grapes, watermelon, you name it, I've eaten it.

Anything making you queasy or sick: Chicken. I've been able to eat it in things like salad, but just plain ol' chicken, not so much. I even thought I'd be able to eat a wing a couple nights ago - nope. The smell of disgusting chicken got to me!
Labor Signs:  nope

Gender: I'm still banking on a baby girl.
Symptoms: Other than things physically changing on my body, I feel like my symptoms have disappeared for the most part. Liquids pretty much go straight through my body so I have to use the restroom what seems like every 5 minutes and I still have zero energy, but that's about it.

Belly Button in or out? in
Wedding rings on or off? on
Happy or Moody most of the time: I'm happy most of the time. Although I must admit, my emotions got the best of me on more than one occasion this past week. Hormones, yuck. Looking forward to: Flagstaff next weekend. This heat is killer!

...and The Bump!