SMOKE FREE!

This may surprise many but i used to be a full time smoker for approximately 5 years before i became pregnant and never quit for more than 1 day. Ironically enough it began in nursing school. I always tried to keep it a secret as this was not one of my proudest habits. I hated the reaction i got when people found out or saw me smoking, it was always that "you should know better" look.                                                       ah well.


The day i found out i was pregnant i tossed that pack of Marb. light 100's and did everything i could to put that phase of my life behind me. Some loved ones including my husband thought i didn't have it in me to quit smoking since i tried it so many times. Well, you can imagine my excitement when and as i say BOOOYAAAAAAAAAAA!!!! almost 9 months later ;)
HAHA!


It was a lot easier than i thought and the more i think about it now i realize what a mental game quitting is. Now don't get me wrong, it wasn't completely easy and i don't know if i gained my first 10 pounds do to my pregnancy or because of the quitting BUT i will say that it has def been mind over matter. 


I do daydream sometimes about the relaxing moments i had with my coffee and cigs or glass of wine and cigs...but my body no longer craves it, it will now forever be a mental thing. I will never and have never judge anyone who smokes and swore to myself that i would never become that non smoker that refuses to get anywhere near smoke but i can relate to their battle and i want to share my story with anyone who is seeking to quit for WHATEVER reason. Quitting supplements are not needed if you truly want to do it and i am living proof. You will NOT die if you kick the habit. The cravings will pass, your sense of smell will DEF improve, your cardio will be enhanced, the list goes on. 


The question is and the battle will forever be in my future of whether or not to give back into those demons of mine. I no longer have that strong desire THANK GOD and i am so very grateful to be the healthiest i have been in a long time.


I can and will say that the grass is greener on this side.

15 things that change when you have a baby

Being a woman is an incredible thing, but being a mother is nearly impossible to describe :)


I got this in an email and loved it :) Many of these have already changed.....




1. You finally stop to smell the roses, because your baby is in your arms.

2. Where you once believed you were fearless, you now find yourself afraid. 

3. The sacrifices you thought you made to have a child no longer seem like sacrifices.

4. You respect your body ... finally.

5. You respect your parents and love them in a new way.

6. You find that your baby's pain feels much worse than your own.

7. You believe once again in the things you believed in as a child.

8. You lose touch with the people in your life whom you should have banished years ago.

9. Your heart breaks much more easily.

10. You think of someone else 234,836,178,976 times a day.

11. Every day is a surprise.

12. Bodily functions are no longer repulsive. In fact, they please you. (Hooray for poop!)

13. You look at your baby in the mirror instead of yourself.

14. You become a morning person.

15. Your love becomes limitless, a superhuman power.

Florida Hospital Altamonte

At 10:30 am on Wednesday, August 31st.... Lenny and i will be arriving through the main entrance of Florida Hospital Altamonte, headed towards the Labor and delivery floor, Our tour will consist of the entire unit, what to expect and where everything is located so we are familiar with the process on and of our special day. I have filled out my pre registration so my entry is that much more organized and smooth, OH SO EXCITED!

Can't wait to soak it all in because i know in just a few months to come this will feel like a far away memory.

:)

I'll admit

almost 6 months pregnant already, boy does time fly....
I'll admit: there's too much to tell about pregnancy to keep up with a blog, hence my lack of updated posts...


I will mention though that it has been a FABULOUS journey so far. I have been one of the few blessed women with little to no side effects. ie: morning sickness. Don't let me fool you though, my hands and feet have gone from being "Puerto Rican" as Lenny calls them to now CHUBBY hahaaa which in turn means no wedding ring for the next 3 months :( BOOO! The edema is not severe and most wouldn't particularly notice but it's just enough to make me PETRIFIED and have nightmares of having to get my beautiful wedding ring cut off.

Fast forwarding to the present time the most recent excitement is feeling Little Lenny move. At this point it's not a constant kick but when he does move i feel like the whole world pauses, it's an amazing indescribable feeling that i am intensely grateful to experience.

I've realized every pregnancy is different but i think every woman can relate with me as i say that once you grasp the reality of growing a human being inside of you, absolutely nothing else in the world matters.

What i am suggesting is the magnitude of love a mother can feel for a child you have not even met yet is not only breathtaking but unfathomable. To say the least, pregnancy is most definitely a work of God and nothing short of a miracle.

Baby 411

Name: Leonard James Gabella- aka Lenny ((THE 4TH)) we would make a great royalty family!

Due Date: December 21, 2011

Nursery Theme: Sports

Color of Nursery: slate blue

Hospital: Florida Hospital Altamonte

Immediate Aunts: Jessica Gutierrez (the future woodyard=02/12) ~ Angela Maria Gabella ~Fara Rita Gabella Canterberry

Immediate Uncles: Jason Canterberry ~ Thomas Woodyard

Proud Grandparents: Ada Maria Galan ~John Hamelin~ Leonard James Gabella~ *Our Angel Rita Bridget Gabella*) Juan Gutierrez

Proud GREAT grandparents: Shirley Gabella~Maria Antonia Galan

Nationalities: Puerto Rican, "Spain"ish, Italian, Bohemian, Irish, DID I MISS ANYTHING ELSE?!?! LOL

Belly Painting

My sister aka Sugar Bee the clown came up with the brilliant idea of painting my belly monthly with a special theme each month, For example, Egg for Easter in April, American flag for the fourth July..etc...and then composing a large picture frame with all pictures together at the end of my pregnancy :) we will also do a calender!! :)

Visit my sisters website at-

http://www.SugarBeeMe.com Stay tuned for more Monthly Belly Painting :-)

BREAKING NEWS!

I always knew how i wanted to tell my family when i became pregnant, i knew i wanted to break it to all of them together. The Saturday after we found out, i was already having family over due to my future brother in laws new business grand opening. It was the perfect opportunity to surprise them all.


Once i made all the plans, it was unfortunate that Lenny's dad and sisters could not make it to our house last minute so we had to come up with a plan B for them. Lenny and i decided to take his dad and sister to one of their mothers favorite Japanese restaurant, Jade Garden. They knew something was up, very rarely do we randomly treat them to dinner. As we proceeded with dinner his dad kept eye balling us. It was actually pretty funny and i could not keep a straight face, i am a terrible liar. His dad asked, "what's going on?" we didn't answer right away, Angie sitting in front of me, looked up and said "your pregnant." jokingly. I couldn't help but burst into a giggle and say YES! His dad, kind of like Lenny's reaction thought we were pulling his leg. Once i finally confirmed it with a straight face Angie literally jumped out of her chair with joy and almost ended up into the booth behind her. :) She was so ecstatic and began sharing all her Molecular and Micro Biolody knowledge learned on her way to med school. His dad happily congratulated us and immediately began praying for a boy. :) We all continued our meals with smiles on our faces :) The next day Angie showed up with 3 full pages back and front of my own personal little regimen recommended by Dr. Gabella herself. <3

Now it was time for my mom and other family. My mother has been begging for a grandchild since as long as i can remember, before Lenny and i got married even. We always wanted to be sure we were ready all around. We both made our dream careers reality (nurse and firefighter/emt) we got married and enjoyed that for over a year (and continue to do so), we bought a beautiful home together, we were ready to start our own little family. There is no short way of saying how i broke the exciting news to my family other than this video, i pretended to take a group picture as my family always does when we get together.

Target will always hold a special place in my heart

I decided to drop Lenny off at La Fitness as i browsed through the bathing suit section of Target. With plans to go to the beach the next day i felt like all my old bathing suits weren't fitting quite right, after all, its a new season so a new one wouldn't hurt!

A total of 10 bathing suits later, and 1 hour of self pity later, i stood there staring myself up and down in the mirror confused at the thought "Have i really been eating this much?" i go to the gym religiously, how could i not find just 1 bathing suit?!  i was a frustrated woman with no new bathing suit....

I called Lenny right away as i stormed through Target making my way to the Pregnancy Test section, I told him "Seriously, something is going on, i just tried on 10 bathing suits and my body looks so different in all of them, none of them fitting me, i am buying a pregnancy test."

Lenny insisted not to waste my money that i was due for my period any day now and to just wait it out, (yes he is right on time with my "schedule" or should i say, "mood schedule" HAHA Prior to this Lenny and i had been "trying" to conceive with no luck for many many months, 10 to be exact, but who was counting? ;) After many failed pregnancy tests we came to the decision that after this month we would hold off a few months due to my sisters wedding getting closer.

I finally got my hands on a test, made my way to cash out as the cashier said good luck, i was already half way to Targets bathroom, "took care of business" stuck the box back in my purse and made my way back to my car. Now mind you, i have taken many many tests in hopes i would one day see a positive but with no luck. As i sat in my car, for no less than 3 minutes i pulled out the box and removed the stick, to my surprise there were 2 lines, i never saw 2 lines before. Was i reading this right? did i do it right? Did i get the right one? 2 lines?! where are the directions, what did the box show?

It finally hit me, yes i was pregnant...My hands were shaking so badly i could barely hold my phone to call Lenny. I could barely talk, i was shaking so bad my voice was shaking, i felt like i was going to hyperventilate. I cried to Lenny "It says i'm pregnant!" He didn't believe me at first, he was laughing and thought i was joking for a good 2 minutes, until i sternly said get out here your work out is over! i drove up to the front of La Fitness to pick him up and when he sat in, he stared at me waiting for me to say JUST KIDDINGGGGGG, when he saw the pregnancy test he laughed and got very teary, for anyone who attended out wedding ceremony know exactly how those tears can flow ;) we laughed and cried and hugged and then went home.

I chugged a ton of water so i can take the 2nd test just to be sure. :) positive again -yay!