Weeks 31-32

I really had good intentions of posting sooner than this, but we have definitely been busy! School has been at its utmost stressful. Not only do the kids have a ton going on, but we've had parent teacher conferences to top it all off! Talk about extremely LONG days and evenings. I finally know how it feels to have swollen feet ankles thanks to these few nights. I must say though it is getting harder to believe that my maternity leave is slowly approaching. I am of course looking forward to it (even though I always hear it is not at all relaxing), but I know I will miss my kiddos while I am gone.
In other news my in-laws, Jim and Kari, came down last Friday to see our ultrasound. We were getting another growth check to double check on the due date. Needless to say the day ended up being quite an adventure. We arrived at the doctor's office in Carbondale only to find out that they had messed up and only scheduled me a normal appointment instead of an ultrasound. Since my family had traveled 2 1/2 hours to be there they sent us to another imaging clinic down the road to have the ultrasound done. What a relief! We found out that our little guy is right where he needs to be. He was 3 pounds and 10 ounces and showing a due date now of December 24th. The entire time he just kept moving his little mouth and it was just amazing. Right now he is breech but hopefully with the weeks left he will continue to move. I was so happy to share this experience with family! Here are a couple of the ultrasound pictures:

 You can tell he just loves to curl his little legs up!

 Such a perfect little face!

Here is a gift from Kari and Jim. Jude's first coat!

We had our first baby shower down here in Herrin this past Sunday! My sister and my mom did a great job of planning it and helping us to get ready. A big thanks goes out to my mamaw, Rose and dad, and Kari for providing some of the yummy food! I was excited to get to spend some time with my family and friends. It was the perfect reminder of how lucky and blessed Jeff and I truly are! It is during the times of reflection such as now, that I know I have God to thank for everything he had given Jeff and I. I know he is providing us with all the love, family, and friends we need to help in guiding us through this journey.

 Beginning of the gift table

 My sister does such a marvelous job of designing such cute signs!

 My mom even got a little creative on this one! She used onesies and receiving blankets for flowers!

Mimi found the most delicious cupcakes! They were a hit!

One of our shower gifts from my mamaw and papaw. So excited to have stroller I can actually lift easily! Not to mention it makes the perfect turns!

So I had to show the first gifts from my sister! It looks like she is really hoping for Jude to be here before Christmas! 

This was such a neat gift from my mom that I had to share! This is not just your typical traveling diaper pad and storage. This was made from the Africa Baby Company where they provide support for American missionaries to Zimbabwe and provide jobs to unemployed ladies in Zimbabwe. This item was specifically designed by a lady from Zimbabwe. 

Jude's room is beginning to actually look like a baby's room. Since it is not fully ready yet. I am only posting a sneak peak of it. There are still a few items we are missing. I must say it has come together perfectly for what I had in mind.

Jeff has worked super hard at hanging everything up and putting everything together. I know I just could never do all this without him. I am beyond blessed to have in my life. I know deep in my heart that I couldn't have made a better choice for a husband or father!

To end to our exciting past couple of weeks, Jeff and I have begun the process of finding a pediatrician for Jude. We met with Dr. Bhaskar from the Pediatric Group llc in Marion. I felt extremely comfortable meeting with him and in the environment. His beliefs seem to match well with Jeff, and I and the office is extremely close! They offer Saturday appointments, work as a group, offer a lactation specialist, and will be at the hospital when Jude is born. Before we make the final decision though, we are meeting with one more doctor Friday in Carbondale. After weeks of stressing over finding a babysitter for Jude, we finally might have a few options! Thanks to a lady I work with, she suggested her cousin. We are meeting with her in a couple of weeks. Hopefully we will have daycare lined up in no time! Finally, we have our birthing class this Saturday. I am hoping that I can walk away from it feeling a bit more prepared!

How far along? 31 weeks (and 5 days)

Total weight gain: My total weight gain is about 22 pounds.

Maternity clothes? Nothing new. Getting tired of having the same stuff to wear though!

Stretch marks? None yet

Sleep: I can't say my sleep is consistent at all. I wake up several times a night either having to pee, needing water, needing food, not being able to breathe, or just being plain hot! I am now lucky enough to be getting leg cramps at night to top it all off! I just say that the lack of sleep is preparing me for what is to come :)

Best moment this week: Oh wow what to choose! I would have to say hearing Jude's heartbeat and seeing him on the ultrasound. That cannot be beat! However, the time spend with friends and family at our shower is priceless too.

Miss Anything? There's no possible way to miss anything when I feel Jude moving inside me throughout the day:)

Movement: All the time!

Food cravings: Nothing at all

Anything making you queasy or sick: Nope.

Gender: Boy!

Labor Signs: Just Braxton Hicks contractions

Symptoms: The only time I get uncomfortable is when he balls up and really presses out right around my belly button. The swollen feet from parent teacher conferences haven't been pleasant either. Other than that I still feel pretty good!

Belly Button in or out? Well, when I am laying down the belly button looks pretty flat. When I am standing though it almost looks normal.

Wedding rings on or off? On and still fitting the same as it always has.

Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy except for when I want to stay home and look at baby stuff instead of going to school!

Looking forward to:  Choosing our doctor and finding our babysitter! I also cannot wait for our shower in Bridgeport on the 10th. Oh, I almost forgot! My sister got engaged so we are looking for her wedding dress the 17th! That is of course very exciting as well! :)

29 Weeks-Third Trimester!

It is so hard to believe that another 2 weeks have flown by and I am into my third trimester. I feel as if it wasn't that long ago I found out I was pregnant. I am still still trying to wrap my mind around the idea that Jude will be here in a matter of two months! 

I had my doctor's appointment last Monday where I had my glucose test. Everything tested just fine (thank goodness). I spent all day not eating because I was determined to pass this test! While there the doctor told me she would like to do another ultrasound on October 26th to take a look at Jude's size and to see if we are on track with the due date. I am just ready to stick to one date! Although we all know he will come when he is ready to come! My blood test did show that my white blood cell count was high so I have to get tested again when I go for my ultrasound. She most likely believes this is due to the fact that I had just gotten over the flu days before and still had a cold at the time of the appointment. Talk about a rough week! 

Last week was definitely full of new excitement for baby Jude. I started out with my doctor's appointment and then Jeff and I had our maternity pictures taken. I knew I wanted to document every wonderful moment of this experience, so the maternity pictures were a perfect opportunity. Lauren Seidel out of Marion did a fantastic job. Here are just a few pictures from the session below:

Daddy's work boots with Jude's soon to be boots!

 

We all know that Jude will have to become a firefighter like his daddy when he grows up!

Last week continued with Jeff putting together our pack-n-play. Just seeing it made me even more excited for Jude's arrival!

On Friday, Jeff's dad and Kari (Mimi) brought down our long awaited baby furniture! Jeff spent part of the weekend getting it put together. We still have a LONG way to go, but every time I go in the room I just fall more and more in love with our little guy and cannot wait for his arrival. I will post more pictures as soon as we get more of the room ready!

Jim also brought down my one-year anniversary present from my husband. It will be the perfect reading and cuddling spot for Jude and his mama!

Finally, Jeff and I ordered out car seat. We got a great deal for it, so we had to order it!

Here is a picture of me at 29 Weeks!

How far along? 29 weeks (and 4 days)

Total weight gain: About 19 pounds

Maternity clothes? Love the pants!

Stretch marks? Not yet!

Sleep: I am definitely passing out earlier and earlier! I still continue to wake up early thought...mostly cause I am starving!

Best moment this week: Everything! Too many exciting moments happening to choose just one!

Miss Anything? I love Jude too much to miss anything!

Movement: Quite a bit! We had a video presentation today at school and needless to say it was loud! Jude must have noticed because we was tumbling and rolling like crazy the whole time!

Food cravings: Still really liking the Kix cereal with berries.

Anything making you queasy or sick: Nope.

Gender: Boy!

Labor Signs: No! He needs to keep baking for a while longer!

Symptoms: Besides growing larger????Pregnancy brain is in full force! Talk about forgetful, clumsy, and all over the place!

Belly Button in or out? It is still mostly all in!

Wedding rings on or off? On

Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy!

Looking forward to: I am thrilled to continue finishing Jude's room! Our first baby shower is also the 28th so I am looking forward to spending some time with family and friends. Also, I can't wait for another ultrasound on the 26th! I know Mimi is excited too! :)

28 Weeks

I really wanted to get on here last week and get a post done, but it just seems difficult to find them time. I can only imagine what it will be like when Jude arrives! So, we are officially at week 28 and in my 3rd trimester. Seems so hard to believe! It is making me feel more pressure to begin making sure that we are getting everything ready for our little guy. For a little update I did get sick with the flu last week :(
Absolutely terrible! Due to that my doctor's appointment for my glucose test was cancelled and scheduled for today. I am still absolutely nervous about passing it so wish me luck there! It is not even 6:30 am and I am completely starving.....not a good sign for making it till 2:50 without eating much of anything!

Here is a picture of me at 28 weeks!

We have the baby's room completely painted including the closet. We are just waiting to get the furniture this week. 

 Jeff doing the hard work!

 Finished room

The closet.....I am working on getting it organized just the way I want it! There will be more pictures to come when I am finished.

Pictures of the first presents my dad got us for Jude....a blanket and cute little outfit! I am pretty sure he got help with this one. He also bought us our pack n play. 

My sister and I went to the craft show in Evansville last weekend and I experienced a mommy first. Almost everything I bought was entirely for Jude. It was nothing but fun looking for him the entire time! I found some great items for his nursery!

I wanted his name up in the room. I came across a great booth where you can build and decorate a name. So of course, firefighting seemed appropriate.

I fell in love with this little stuff dog and he matched the room decor perfectly! I also bought the little nightlight cover with the cars on it. I then couldn't believe that I found these two antique looking signs perfect for a boy's room!

 

A way to measure Jude's growth!

I bought a couple of burp cloths and a paci clip!

 Aside from my doctor's appointment today, we have maternity pictures tomorrow and then we are putting the furniture together this weekend! Definitely a lot to look forward to!

 

How far along? 28 weeks (and 3 days)

Total weight gain: about 15-20 pounds total so far ( I think)

Maternity clothes? I am definitely in love with maternity pants. I think I will wear them forever now! :)

Stretch marks? nope

Sleep: Not so great this week due to being sick!

Best moment this week: Working on organizing the nursery

Miss Anything? can't say whole lot

Movement: He still moves a ton! Especially when I lay on my side.

Food cravings: Nothing really....I do enjoy Kix cereal now though quite a bit!

Anything making you queasy or sick: nope

Symptoms:Oh, just my belly continuing to grow ginormous! 

Belly Button in or out? I am proud to say that it is still in (although Jeff says he has a hard time seeing it at all since it is so shallow) :)

Wedding rings on or off? on-luckily so far I haven't noticed myself swelling anywhere

Happy or Moody most of the time: happy most of the time......school seems to be where I find myself stressing

Looking forward to:Getting my glucose test finished, maternity picture tomorrow, and getting the furniture this weekend!!!!!!!! Oh, and we have shower invites being sent out!

 

 

Shower Dates: 

 

October 28th in Herrin at 2:00 and November 10th in Bridgeport at 2:00

 

We decided to go with a Couples Baby Celebration instead of the typical shower. For one I am not into games and all that personal attention. For another, I know my husband would enjoy seeing some of his friends and celebrating too. So we will just enjoy food and hanging out! Below is a picture of the wonderful and creative invites done by my sister!