A Babymoon in Death Valley? Why not?!

About a month or so ago, my sister emailed me on a Wednesday afternoon

asking if I wanted to take a trip to Death Valley that weekend.

At first, I thought "what the hell am I gonna do in Death Valley

when I'm 31 weeks pregnant?"

But since my husband was gonna have to work the weekend away,

I figured I'd tag along for the trip

and maybe spend my days lounging around a hotel room or pool

while my sister explored the park.

To my surprise, the trip ended up being much more than I had imagined

and was a great way to spend some time with my big sis!

We packed the car up with enough water and junk food to last us a week,

and left early Saturday morning for the 4 hour drive to the park.

Our first stop was in Panamint Springs

where we had lunch at the local Panamint Springs Resort.

Clearly their definition of "resort" is much different than mine!

This is pretty much exactly what I pictured Death Valley to be like.

Flat, dusty, desert, and hot.

After lunch, we ventured off onto our first adventure...

A hike to Darwin Falls.

After a very bumpy, and stressful, 2.5 mile trip 

down a dirt road in my poor little Prius

we arrived at the trailhead.

Being 31 weeks pregnant, I wasn't sure how much "adventure" I could take

but the hike was relatively easy and fun to do.

We got to climb over boulders and 

cross a creek back and forth several times.

And at the end, we were met with this little desert oasis...

Who knew there was green and waterfalls in Death Valley?

After the hike, we hit the road up into the mountains.

One of the biggest surprises of the trip for me 

was just how pretty Death Valley is.

I pictured a dry, dusty, flat desert.

Kinda like this...

But it seemed that every 5 minutes of driving, the scenery completely changes.

You can find anything from sandy desert, snowy mountain peaks, 

salt flats, craters, and sand dunes.

The mountains were beautiful and had almost every color in the rainbow.

After a bit of a drive, we arrived at the Wildrose Charcoal Kilns.

These kilns were built in 1867 by Chinese immigrants

to turn Juniper and Pinyon trees into charcoal. 

The 10 kilns are considered to be the best 

surviving such kilns in the western U.S.

Our last stop of the day was to the Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes.

These dunes are some of the smaller ones in the park.

They are surrounded by mountains

and have been used in several films, including Star Wars.

I loved the patterns made in the sand by the wind.

There were also lots of old mesquite trees

scattered throughout the dunes.

After the dunes, we made our way to Stovepipe Wells

and checked into our humble accommodations for the night.

What more do you need than a single bed and an air mattress?

Apparently not much!

After driving over 300 miles, 

we ate a quick dinner and called it a night.

Tomorrow brings about 160 miles of driving,

more sand dunes, mountains, 

a volcanic crater, a castle, and a ghost town.

Stay tuned!

ABC's of Me!

I've been feeling a bit....uninspired lately when it comes to this here blog,

which you've probably noticed from the lack of posting the past few weeks.

Between work and the 3rd trimester fatigue that has set in

I just haven't had the energy to come up with semi-interesting posts.

So when I saw this over on Across The Pond 

I thought it'd be a great idea to steal and create an easy post!

If anyone else wants to play along, I'd love if you left a link to your post in my comments!

The ABC's of Rachel

Breakfast in Barcelona

Age: 34, which I guess is officially my "mid-thirties."  Ouch.

Bedsize: King.  Very necessary with a tall hubby, and a pregnant belly.

Chores that you hate: Folding laundry and cleaning toilets.

Dogs:  The family chocolate lab - Kona.

Essential start to your day:  Long hot shower. 

Favorite color: Green.

Gold or Silver:  Silver.

Height: 5'6"

Instruments you play: Uh, I took piano when I was little.

Job title: Physical Therapist.

Kids: She's arriving in late May

Live: Marina Del Rey, CA

Mother's Name: Barbara

Nicknames: Rach.

Overnight hospital stays: Not yet.

Pet peeves:  Slow drivers.  People that wear sunglasses indoors. 

Quote from a movie or tv show:  I actually had to Google "movie quotes" to try to come up with something here.  One that I like, that I think can be used for multiple situations, is from A League of Their Own..."There's no crying in baseball!"

Right or Lefty:  Righty.

Siblings: Older sister Becky.

Time you wake up:  5:30am Tues/Thurs.  Around 7:30 M/W/F.

Underwear:  Always.  

Vegetable you hate:  Green peppers.

What makes you run late: Procrastination and my snooze button.

X-Rays You've Had:  Elbow fracture when I was 14.  Low back.  Mouth.

Yummy food you make:  Everything I make is yummy!

Zoo Animal:  Elephants.  Love them!

Must Have's - Second Trimester

Last week I gave you my "Must Have" list for the first trimester.

I figured I'd continue the trend this week with my second trimester list,

which I know you've all been on the edge of your seat wondering about.

What can I say....my life is the definition of thrilling excitement.

Try to keep up, okay? 

Anyhow...

Things definitely got easier for me pregnancy-wise after about the 14 week mark.

I got most of my appetite back and was able to walk up a flight of stairs 

without feeling like I needed a nap.

Let me just say, though, that I've never felt that "pregnancy glow" 

that you hear so much about.

I'm beginning to think it's a myth.

And all those women that proclaim to LOVE being pregnant

(aka, Jessica Simpson)

are lying through their teeth.

Kind of like how I don't believe that nobody remembers the pain of childbirth.

While I'm sure the beautiful baby in your arms makes you googley eyed with love,

I'm pretty sure I'm gonna remember pushing a watermelon out of me.

Even with an epidural.

Now, back to this list...

In the 2nd Trimester, my McDonald's cravings and nausea dissipated, 

but the growing baby bump added its own challenges,

including sleeping, dressing, and getting through the day,

which is mostly what this list is based on.  

1.  Body Pillow

Sleep became difficult in the middle of the 2nd trimester, especially because I like sleeping on my back and the weight of my new tummy often left me feeling light headed if I spent too long flat on my back.   A friend lent me her Snoogle Pillow, which I love because I can have the curvy part between my knees and the straight part behind my back.  That way I can kinda turn on my back without being completely flat.  You could also just use a bunch of regular pillows, or a regular body pillow, and save a few bucks.

2.  Belly Oil

Another friend of mine sent me this Earth Mama Stretch Oil.  She had twins and managed to avoid stretch marks.  While I think that's mostly a hereditary thing, I'd like to avoid it if possible.  This oil smells so good and I love rubbing into my growing belly every day.  So far I've got no marks, but we'll see what the next 9 weeks brings!

3.  Empire Tops

Early on in the pregnancy I went to TJ Maxx to get a few tops that I could wear to work and camouflage my belly.  Even if you've already told people you're pregnant, there's still that stage where you feel like your baby bump could be taken as a too-many-cookies bump.  That's where the empire waisted tops come in handy, giving you some flowy fabric to hide behind.

4.  Maternity Pants

At some point you just have to bite the bullet and get some maternity pants.  Since they're usually not cheap, I figured I'd rather buy them earlier than later and get as much use out of them as possible.  I've ended up with a couple pairs of jeans, 3 pairs of work pants, some leggings, and some yoga pants.  The low rise ones are nice early on, but as I got bigger I liked the full panels a little better.

5.  Bra Extender

Somewhere in the 2nd trimester I invested in a few new, bigger bras.  But after a while the bands started to feel too tight because I think my rib cage is expanding.  Or I'm just gaining weight.  Instead of getting more new bras, I found these extenders which you hook on to the back to add an inch or so.  This is one of those simple things that I thought was just amazing.  Why didn't I think of it sooner?!

6.  Open front cardigans (again)

The temperature in my office usually ranges from stuffy and hot, to frigid and cold.  So I always have a sweater or cardigan with me.  I'm including open front cardigans in my list again mainly because they pretty much work at any stage in the pregnancy, don't have to be "maternity," and can be used when you're not preggers.  

7.  Maternity layering tanks

During the pregnancy, I found that I liked having an extra layer under my shirt.  It helps to hide a protruding belly button, and also feels better against my skin than the panels on most maternity pants.  I love these tanks from Target because they're super light and stretchy, as well as these from Old Navy because they're affordable and don't show too much cleavage, which is nice at work.

8.  Thermacare Heat Wraps & warm baths

As my belly gets bigger I find that it's putting more and more strain on my low back and pelvis.  I like wearing the Thermacare wraps during the day to help ease the pain.  They really stay hot for 8 hours, and are thin enough that you cant see them under your clothes.  I also really miss taking hot baths at the end of the week and have compromised with warm baths instead.  Sometimes I'll turn up the heat a bit and just fill the bath enough it hits my low back but not cover my belly.  That way I get the heat I like and don't feel like I'm "cooking" the baby.

What were your "must have" items during your pregnancy?

Must Have's - First Trimester

Now that I'm well into the third trimester

(only 10 more weeks to go!)

I figured I could share some of the lessons I've learned along the way.

Below I've compiled a list of "essentials"

that helped me survive the first trimester.

For me, it was 3 months filled with fatigue, nausea, questions, 

heartburn, mood swings, and pretending to co-workers that you're not pregnant, 

just to name a few.

Needless to say...it wasn't my favorite time of pregnancy.

I hope that my list can help any other first-time moms 

get through the first trimester.

1.  Belly Band

This amazing invention allows you to continue wearing your normal pants for months, even if you can't button them up.  It just looks like you've layered another shirt underneath yours.  Luckily I had a friend nice enough to lend me hers, but I used it so much I think I'm gonna buy her a new one. 

2.  Zantac

Most of my friends didn't need this till the third trimester, but I had nasty heartburn from the get go.  Anything and everything would give it to me, and for much of the first trimester I constantly felt like I had food coming back up my throat.  Lovely, isn't it?  My doctor recommended Zantac, and while it didn't completely take the problem away, it certainly helped.  Definitely talk to your doc before taking any meds though!

3.  Gummy Vitamins

Due to the constant nausea, I could not handle swallowing the large horse pills that most pre-natals are.  In all honesty, I went several weeks (or months) without taking vitamins because they made me gag and dry heave.  A friend told me about these gummy vitamins and saved my day.  They don't contain any iron, though, so if you're anemic you may want to take a supplement too.

4.  Crackers

Since I was always nauseous, I found myself craving salty, crunchy crackers and chips to help settle my stomach.  I didn't go anywhere without a baggie full of crackers in my purse.

5.  Water

I also didn't go anywhere without a bottle of water.  After a while, plain water also made me nauseous so I used lemon or cucumber to add a little flavor.  Some people swear by sparkling water or ginger ale but those didn't do anything for me.

6.  Mayo Clinic Guide

If this is your first pregnancy you're probably gonna have a lot of questions.  This book provided helpful information and, coming from the Mayo Clinic, was a source that I trusted.  It breaks down  the pregnancy week by week, so you know what is happening to your baby each week.  My husband also liked reading it too, since I think it helped him feel more connected.  I was able to check this out from my library for several weeks instead of buying it.

7.  Pantyliners

I'm pretty sure I haven't used a pantyliner since middle school, but trust me, these become very necessary.

8.  Open front cardigans

Perfect for hiding that little bump that you're still not telling your co-workers about.

9.  Gum

Everything I ate left an aftertaste in my mouth that worsened my nausea.  So I found myself chewing gum throughout the day to get rid of that taste.

10.  Baby blogs - the bump, the cradle, babble, etc

It's always nice to read about other women going through the same thing you are.  These sites are all useful tools, especially in the early days when you're full of questions.  I take the information with a grain of salt, though, until I back it up with more trusted data or talk to my doctor.

Weekend in Tahoe

Last weekend the hubby and I

 took a trip up to Lake Tahoe to visit his parents.

And, in a way, it was our babymoon

since it'll be the last trip before baby girl arrives.

Although, I'm not sure a weekend with your in-laws

and sleeping in a sofa bed counts as a babymoon.

The weather was beautiful and sunny with hardly any snow on the ground.

Which was good for me, but not so much for the hubs

who wanted to go snowboarding.

We spent Saturday afternoon driving around the lake,

stopping at various view points along the way to take pictures.

I'll never cease to be amazed by the beauty of the lake

and the deep blue color of the water that doesn't seem to exist anywhere else.

About 3/4 of the way around the lake, we stopped for lunch.

When we were told it would be a 20 minute wait

my husband said, "that's okay.  We'll still make our appointment at 3:00."

Appointment?  What appointment?

It turns out my dear, loving husband had made an appointment

for me to get a prenatal massage.

And, oh my, it was the best 60 minutes I've had in a very long time!

Here are some snapshots of our drive around the lake...

On Sunday, we got a tiny bit of snow.

So the hubs took advantage and went boarding at Northstar.

I tagged along and spent the day lounging around 

on comfy couches in the "living room" at the new Ritz Carlton.

I pretty much read Bossypants cover to cover

and had a very cheesy grilled cheese sandwich for lunch.

Not a bad way to spend an afternoon.

So it wasn't quite the tropical babymoon I originally envisioned

but it was still nice to get away for a few days 

and breathe some fresh mountain air.

How was your weekend?