26 weeks .. and some photos from the week before and this week.

My spring break is just flying by! I was so excited (and relieved) to have a week and a half break from work. I didn't have big plans but I wanted to accomplish a few things:

1) quality time w/ The Bun
2) relax AKA sleep
3) clean up The Bean's soon-to-be-nursery-but-currently-a-storage-unit

I'd love to say that this is the order of importance but as I get along in this pregnancy, I feel like like #2 is really my #1 (Apologies to The Bun & The Bean. I promise I'm actually a decent mama.) Even though I was feeling heavier about a month or so ago, I felt like I hadn't slowed down much. Maybe it's because I'm taking it easier this week but I feel quite slower now. How ironic - I'm excited because I get to move at a slower pace this week since I don't have to rush off to work each morning. But now I feel a lot slower.

Everything else is good. I've gained 19 lbs to date - pretty middle of the road. I gained 30 lbs w/ The Bun so I just have to be mindful not to go all balls out.
Speaking of which, here is a photo of me and my little one waiting in line at CREAM:

Being silly. Some chick behind me tried to photo bomb but didn't have the skills. Humph.

If you can't be bothered to click on the link, it is the simple yet wonderful notion of fresh baked cookies and ice cream to make one delectable (and huge) ice cream sandwich. The line was out the door when we went to check it out. We have to cross the San Mateo Bridge to get to it so it's not exactly on our way to anything. In fact, we were in the area for a play date and decided to check out what all the hype was about. Well, when I saw the line, I was ready to ditch. But The Bun insisted we wait in line. One of the (many) great things about my little is that she can be a very patient kiddo. We waited for about 25 minutes before we were rewarded with our big ass treats. We didn't know they were going to so big. But did I finish it? Uh, YAH.
Then, because I tend to easily obsess over things, I told The Man a week later that he had to check out CREAM for himself. I had bought him his own sandwich from the first visit but I was totally craving and we were kind of in the area. Well, we were on the peninsula because we dropped off my folks at SFO.

Made The Man take an obligatory photo w the ice cream cookie sandwiches. His hands are large so you can't really get the scope of these treats but trust. They are b-i-g. I also love The Bun's expression;)

So yahhhh, I have to keep myself in check. See, prior to this week, I kind of thought I was a shoe-in for gestational diabetes. I had it with The Bun and the doctor let me know I had a higher chance of getting it again. This is probably the absolute wrong outlook to take but I thought to myself, "Well, if I'm going to get it around my third trimester, I might as well enjoy myself up until that point." I was pretty liberal with my carbohydrates and sugar intake. I figured I was going to have to restrict myself soon enough, why not live it up until then?
I know, not the most healthiest (or healthy-at-all) outlook.
I wasn't at all surprised when my one hour glucose test  result was too high. It was deja vu. The three hour glucose test really drained me. Between having to fast the night before, a huge sugar rush and then blood drawn four times, I felt like hell. There was no doubt that I must have gestation diabetes.
Then lo and behold! My results came back negative. I didn't have GD. What?! The Man swears I must have "worked the system." I asked him, "How the heck could I work several blood tests in my favor?" He said he didn't know but he was sure that I should have GD. Truth be told, I was pretty sure, too. Anyway, I decided to scale back my carbs intake and am currently working on my chocolate. That one is a toughie.
Here is my 26th week w/ The Bun & The Bean ... in utero, of course:

How do you like that little leg pop? All her. I tell you, this kiddo knows how to pose at 4 years of age better than her mid-30s mama! She is soooo camera ready.

Although I haven't been able to relax as much as I had hoped, having a less hectic morning each day has been nice. And the furry babies appreciate it, too:

They were just so cute that I had to snap a photo of them. They love the extra bed time in the morning.

Last week, I was allowed to work from home one day because The Bun's preschool was closed. I decided to check out venues in the South Bay so that I was legitimately working. There was no way I could have truly worked from home if the kiddo was also home. This way I was doing something that I needed to take care of but was kind of dreading to do because it took me away from the office and able to take The Bun with me.

Besides fundraising, I plan meet ups and other events for my constituents. My boss wanted the next one to be in the Silicon Valley. I narrowed it down to three places. The Bun, again showing her extreme patience for a four year old, accompanied me to these places over the course of four hours. I took some snapshots along the way to document our day as well as the venues. I won't bore you with the many venue shots but here are some cute ones w/ The Bun:

Us getting our decaf coffee & hot cocoa pick me up before hitting the highway. OK, freeway;) There's this church (yes, church!) in my town that makes their own almond milk. Seriously! That's what I like in my latte so we had to check it out. It was delicious.

Us at our first destination, BJ's Restaurant & Brewhouse. Although it's a chain (some people do not like chain restaurants for their meet ups) & in a shopping center, this was my top pick. The manager was readily available to chat with and answer questions, parking was super easy as well as free and the food is always good albeit large portions. But in this situation, large portions are a good thing.

Cutie pie showing off the nice outdoor area we could use from venue #2 if I chose this place.

 The second venue was Blackbird Tavern in downtown SJ. Unfortunately, they were closed. Not their fault. But what this one lacked was parking. We aren't going to comp our constituents for parking so I was not comfortable picking a place that  had no free parking. In fact, this was the only option:

Maybe most people are used to paying for parking but, unless it's San Francisco, I just think it's a bit inconsiderate to expect people to pay for parking.

Ah, venue #3 in Santana Row. Straits - very nice restaurant in a very nice area. But I was really turned off when the manager on duty couldn't be bothered to talk to me. Instead, she told the hostess to give me the banquet manager's phone number. By this time, I was tired. And their lack of customer service confirmed #1 was the best choice. 

Her cuteness almost made up for the manager's shoddy customer service. But not quite.

We were both exhausted by the time we finished visiting the three restaurants. But The Bun was such a trooper. I'm so thankful for her easy-going disposition. Love my kiddo!