34-35 Weeks

Less than a month before her due date!!!

Doctor Visits:

We had a doctor's appointment on the 11th for my 34th week to check my fluid levels and her size once again. Fluid level is still on the higher side but normal-high side. Dr. Ott is not worried but regardless I will continue to be checked every Friday to be sure it remains consistent. Guess I cannot complain too much as it is always another opportunity to see our little girl! She weighed 4 pounds and 14 ounces and is in the 21st percentile. Still just a little a thing! Jude enjoys these ultrasounds now as well too. He was fascinated by her nose this time on the screen!

34 Weeks with our little pumpkin

34 Weeks with Jude

My 35 week appointment was today. Fluid levels are still the same and our little pumpkin is doing beautifully! They check her bladder and kidneys each time along with her heartbeat (144 bpm) and wait for her to breathe. She kept moving her mouth this time and it was adorable to watch. We pointed out her feet and hands to Jude but he informed us that they were not in fact feet or hands (guess the ultrasounds are not all that clear to a 2 year old). He was more concerned about all the pictures of the naked babies on the bulletin board. He knows the word "naked" without a doubt! :) I am dilated 1 cm currently and had my B strep test completed. Dr. Ott asked if I would want to be induced at 39 weeks as I would have that choice with a normal healthy pregnancy. I am opting out of that as I prefer mybody to do what God intended for it to do and for out little pumpkin to make her appearance when God intends as well. I am however fine with induction when medically necessary. I must say I cannot believe I am to that point now where we are checking for dilation and discussing when she will make her appearance!

I just had to share this picture. Look at that little fist!

35 Weeks with our little pumpkin

35 Weeks with Jude

My next appointment is Friday the 25th. I will have another biophysical profile completed along with my regular check-up.

How Momma is Holding Up

Momma is starting to SLOW down!! :) I honestly still cannot complain as far as how I am feeling really. I still get up pretty early and run (more like a slow jog if you want to be exact). I do well in the mornings with Jude's activities and even early afternoon with my daily house routines. Once 5 p.m. hits though, I'm starting to feel exhaustion and backache. It's a great excuse not to fix supper! My essential oil blends have been a blessing. The focus blend keeps me going in the afternoons and my muscle blend helps my lower back a ton.  Braxton Hicks are a regularity daily. They seem to hit more when I am active and moving a lot. Reminds me to stop and drink some water! Nighttime is not fun. I still cannot sleep on my left side as it gives me heartburn leaving only my right side. This results in my arm and hip going numb throughout the night, so I am awake often changing position and peeing. I pee all the time this pregnancy! Anyone who knows me well knows this is a huge change.

Oh Jude...Jude makes me tired :) He is up bright and early (like 5:00-5:30 early) and only wanting mommy. He is a pistol without a doubt running on high energy 24/7 talking, dancing, you name it. He never meets a stranger so leaving the house daily is always an adventure! We talk to everyone. And I mean EVERYONE. In the end I would not change a thing! I love every little thing about him including his new bossiness that has come about. It shows me that he is definitely wanting his independence and growing up. We are however working on being independent and polite at the same time!

A momma's boy for sure! He will have a lot to adjust to in a few short weeks!

He is my sweetheart!

This picture shows Jude perfectly! An absolute ham!

He had too much fun with this picture!

This one shows the independent side to his personality. He refused to stand in the middle. Had to be on the outside!

Preparing for Baby 

I have been super busy this week in the kitchen. I have spent 4 days to be exact making freezer meals and lactation cookies to freeze. It was horrible! I cook a lot but I do not enjoy it because I despise  cleaning up the mess. I cannot begin to tell you the amount of dishes I have done this week. Ugh! Despite all the work I am so excited to be this prepared. Our hospital bag, baby bag, and Jude's bag are packed. My post pardem pads are made, the basket is prepared, and my nursing basket is set. Our little pumpkin's room is complete aside from one last item for Jeff to hang up. Pictures come next time! Everything we need for now is washed including her diapers and all her toys and pacis are sterilized. Jeff put her car seat in this week and switched Jude's to the other side. We have definitley made a lot of progress which makes this organized and overly worrisome mom very happy! My goals next week are to get Jude's activity bags complete, photo albums caught up,  and thank you cards written.

Several dear friends of mine from mine threw a beautiful Sprinkle celebration for our little girl and another friend of mine. It was such a sweet surprise and made me feel truly blessed and loved. I am so thankful for where God has placed us showing me true and valuable friendships.

I love fall! We have so many fun family activities coming up (hopefully I can still participate in much of them). We have Holiday World around the corner, along with apple picking, the pumpkin patch, the craft show, the Fall Festival....and I am determined to get it all done in the next couple of weeks before she makes her arrival! 

How far along? 35 weeks and 5 days

Total weight gain: 25 pounds

Maternity clothes? I am beginning to feel like I am outgrowing my maternity clothes...yikes!

Stretch marks? Nope!

Sleep: I'm awake a lot!

Best moment this week: Both doctor appointments where we were able to see our little pumpkin, my baby sprinkle, feeling her flip flop everywhere, visiting with the Carpenter's.

Miss Anything? No.

Movement: When she moves she is tumbling! 

Food cravings: No.

Anything making you queasy or sick: Nope!

Symptoms: Exahustion in the evenings, lower back pain, Braxton Hicks

Belly Button in or out? Out.

 

Wedding rings on or off?  On and still loose.

Labor Signs: Not Yet!

 

Looking forward to: All of our fall activities and the craft show!

Wow! Only 8 Weeks Left!

I have a few weeks of catch up to do here and several pictures, so this could be a long post!

Doctor Visits:
We had an appointment for our little pumpkin on Friday, August 7th. We received all good news with a good a heartbeat and much movement. When Dr. Ott measured me I was only measuring 27 weeks when I was actually just at 30. So with that small measurement and with our little pumpkin previously measuring in the 34th percentile, she decided to schedule another ultrasound for our next appointment on the 21st.
She honestly believes that everything is fine.
Baby is just small.
I just carry small.
I have a longer torso, etc.

I found it quite amusing because I spent the whole previous week hearing from everyone how large I looked and wouldn't make it to October. In reality I am truly measuring smaller and so is the baby. Dr. Ott even said she felt like I was carrying small and it was just the way I was built that made me look bigger.

Our latest appointment was last Friday on the 21st. Before I go into details I must give props to our little man! It was only Jude and I for our 7:15 ultrasound and follow-up appointment, and he was so well behaved! He followed me everywhere, sat when he needed to, kept his hands to himself, and was overall happy. In typical Jude fashion, he was sure to talk to every woman he came across while we were there as well! Our little girl is healthy and has a strong heartbeat. She is still small measuring in the 24th percentile now. During the ultrasound, they noticed that my fluid levels were on the higher side for her size; nothing alarming but higher nonetheless. Her smaller size and my extra fluid all lead to me now having to make weekly visits to the doctor and weekly ultrasounds to check size and fluid amount. Dr. Ott does not seemed worried, but of course it was explained that extra fluid could mean earlier delivery. If that is not the case, and she is still cooking away at 39 weeks and I still have extra fluid, then they are wanting to induce me. I am not going to begin ranting here. I will just say I am absolutely not a fan of being induced. End of story.

31 weeks and 5 days

How am I feeling? Overall I know I cannot honestly complain. Yes, I am tired more often. Yes, I pee a lot. Yes, I cannot sleep through the night. Yes, my back and round ligaments hurt on a daily basis. Yes, those darn Braxton Hicks contractions occur multiple times on a daily basis. But I would say all of these "common" symptoms leave me with nothing to complain about. I have truly been blessed with two relatively easy pregnancies (fingers crossed for that to continue).

Preparing for Baby:
Jeff was very busy a couple of weeks ago painting our little pumpkin's room. It is a beautiful soft peach color just like I wanted. Unfortunately, it took 4 coats of paint to cover (thankfully Jeff was a good sport about it all). Since then he has put her furniture together and hung her curtains. My focus has been on room and closet organization, cute decor, and creating check lists. As of today, her closet is done and organized as is the rest of her room (for the most part). I really only want to use special mementos and pieces for her room to decorate it, and that has proven to more difficult than I expected. Jude's room just fell into my lap. We came across old family toys and those gave us a beautiful vintage look for his bedroom. Right now her entire room is based around an old family quilt; it was the perfect inspiration!

We had maternity pictures taken recently through Eleminopea photography. I cannot wait to see the finished shots. I just know we will love them! Jude was very well behaved and took directions quite well the entire time except for wanting to be plastered to my leg!

Jeff in the beginning stages of painting her room. More pics to come when the room is complete.

Baby Sprinkle:
My sister graciously hosted a small baby sprinkle to celebrate our little girl. Just family and a few close friends. We feel so lucky and blessed to have these special people in our lives who were more than happy to celebrate with us. She now has a full closet of clothes, many beautiful handmade blankets, as well as new cloth diapers and accessories. I was overjoyed to have this sprinkle for her because I want to look back at pictures through the years and see that we took this time as a family to celebrate her. We have many pictures from the sprinkle but I only added a few (the ones where I do not have a funny expression on my face)!

This captures a few of the handmade blankets.

Closet full of clothes!

All About Jude:
He is just growing like a weed! Measuring 38 inches now and I just cannot believe it! He talks more and more and more....to everyone...there is never a stranger anywhere we go....:)
Jude loves to sing his ABC's, play outside, and be independent/helpful. Right now he is also super lovey-dovey to his mommy. I get all kinds of hugs, cuddles, kisses, "I love you's", and "you are my best friend". I am eating this stage up and never want it to end. What I find most amazing is that he truly understands what "I love you" means now. He tells me most when he snuggles up to me and gives me hugs.  It's amazing to just see that understanding and growth. Something else that I am so proud of is how he is participating in our bedtime prayers. Once we finish the prayer that I say for him, he then adds in his own thoughts and ideas to thank God for. It is so sweet!

Celebrating Daddy's birthday!


How far along? 32 Weeks and 1 Day

Total weight gain: Enough! I am around 20 pounds now.

Maternity clothes? Very much so.

Stretch marks? Nope!

Sleep: I sleep alright. Wake up to pee. Sometimes need a granola bar :)

Best moment this week: Finishing the nursery, our baby sprinkle, celebrating Jeff's birthday, watching our little girl through an ultrasound again....many moments to be blessed for!

Miss Anything? No, not a whole lot.

Movement: She likes to tumble occasionally, especially at night.

Food cravings: No.

Anything making you queasy or sick: Nope!

Symptoms: I am just tired a lot. The Braxton Hicks contractions are definitely more frequent this time around. I also pee so much more.

Belly Button in or out? Partially out.

Wedding rings on or off?  On and still loose.

Labor Signs: Not yet.

Looking forward to: The near completion of our little girl's room and just completing my long to-do list!

29 Weeks!

I am so excited to officially be in the 3rd trimester now! We decided to ring in this special celebration by visiting Florida and Disney World...where there is a lot of walking...where there is a lot of heat...sounds a bit crazy, huh?! I cannot tell you how many looks I got walking around this pregnant in Disney World. Not to mention the reminder from other tourists that I look like I am due much sooner than what I am (yes, I carry big and all belly). Oh, well! There were many kind people who gave up seats for me or told me how brave I was to come to Disney this far along. Then of course there are others who pushed me around in crowded lines and knocked me into strollers (yes, people are that rude). Aside from those who have an obvious lack of consideration for others, the trip went surprisingly well with a pregnant woman and a toddler. We both surivived the long drive without upset, it never got too hot while we were there, we both managed to get up early and arrive at that parks before they opened, and we stayed until way past our bedtimes! I was pretty impresssed with the both of us! :) 

Ok. So...I did have a minor meltdown at Magic Kingdom. In my defense it was 11 o'clock at night and I had been on my feet for 15 hours. :) Poor Jeff had to take the brunt of my irritation. He was a good sport though!

Jude joined me for the picture this time!

 

His first trip to Disney World shirt...thanks to Jennifer Robeson!

I had a doctor's appointment the day before we left for vacation. It was a long morning of appointments, and my mom was kind enough to take off work and join me to watch Jude. I had my glucose test and all came back fine. I had another anatomy scan and our little pumpkin is now in the 34th percentile, so we are making progress! She was just precious in the pictures. Already sleeping with her mouth open and covering her face with her arms. As far as my size goes, my uterus measures larger while our little girl measures smaller. Am I surprised? No. One look at me and you can tell how huge my belly is and it just doesn't match up. I was reminded again this morning at Wal-mart that I look much further along than I am :). Doctor says that it is fine and nothing to worry about. I go back this Friday for another check-up. 

In other news, we are now home and ready to begin our little girl's bedroom. We have most items we need. Just need to get the paint color ready. My sister is throwing a baby sprinkle next weekend for a few people to celebrate our little pumpkin. I'm happy that we will have memories and photos celebrating her upcoming arrival just as we have Jude. Our maternity photo session is scheduled for next week as well. I have all of our outfits ready to go. I am so excited to do this shoot because Jude will get to be a part of it as well! Lastly, we ordered our double stroller (after much research and debating). I think we are going to like it! Anyone need a single Britax stoller? We have one for sale!

Meet our Joovy Caboose VaryLight Stroller!

How far along? 29 weeks and 1 day

Total weight gain: 18 pounds

Maternity clothes? Yes, definitely!

Stretch marks? Nope!

Sleep: Not too bad. I do feel pretty sore in the mornings when I wake up though.

Best moment this week: Family vacation in Florida, of course! Being with Jude and watching his reaction to everything at Disney World was just priceless! We even bought our little pumpkin cute outfit and toy.

Miss Anything? I missed being able to ride comfortably in a vehicle this week! I also missed being able to enjoy the roller coasters :(.

Movement: Lots of it!

Food cravings: No.

Anything making you queasy or sick: Nope!

Symptoms: Round ligament pains and getting tired more quickly. Plus my belly is just growing off the charts!

Belly Button in or out? I am really working on an outtie this time!

Wedding rings on or off?  On and still loose.

Labor Signs: No thankfully!

Looking forward to: Decorating our little pumpkin's bedroom along with maternity pictures and our baby sprinkle next week!

26 Weeks!

I cannot believe how close the 3rd trimester is already in sight! Pregnancy goes so quickly and that really does make me sad. I truly do enjoy being pregnant (minus my 1st trimester sickness) and nothing beats feeling your baby move inside of you. Well...holding her for the first time will beat that....but the movement is something special! There is not a lot to report since my last post, but I wanted to keep these consistent with about every 2 weeks so I could see how much I am changing throughout the pregnancy and just take a moment to really love what I am going through right now. 

Moments to remember: I have definitely popped even more in the past couple of weeks and maternity clothes are starting to become a blessing. Our little girl's movement is becoming more consistent and occurring more often. I feel great overall. I do have my days where I am very sore, but I more than likely only have myself to blame for that! I still continue to run in the mornings which I believe helps me a lot, and Jude and I almost always take one walk a day. 

In preparing for our little girl's arrival, I spent an entire day shopping for her bedroom. I already knew I was using old family quilts and just had to build around it with matching colors and the vintage look. So far I am pretty happy with what I have found. We also bought Jude a new quilt set for his full size bed. Cannot believe we will be transitioning our little guy to a FULL size bed! He is growing too fast :) I also spent several days going through a friend's baby girl clothes. What they say is true....It is so much more fun to buy clothes for a girl! However, no one mentioned how stressful it was! I wanted everything. That is not in the budget. Sigh.


We made a huge step towards transitioning to a family of 4 this week with the purchase of our new van. We of course had to get a Toyota Sienna. I always remember saying that I would never be one of those moms who drives a van; should have known that would come back to bite me the butt! Actually I was very excited about getting a van and chose that over a larger SUV with many reasons behind that. 
1. Fuel economy is better.
2. It is more cost efficient.
3. I am borderline OCD when it comes to organizing and needing space. That includes the vehicle. No matter how much I loved the Subaru, it was feeling a bit cramped for me with just one child let alone two. 
4. Jeff insisted we get the Limited so it is of course loaded with everything. I am much more of a simple person. I would prefer my vehicle just be able to run smoothly and get me from point A to point B, but Jeff swore that I would love everything the Limited would have to offer. 
The conclusion so far?? I am TOTALLY overwhelmed by it all :) I still like the simple. However, there are so many convenient features to the Limited that I know I am going to appreciate it all when hauling around 2 kids. 

On a side note: I also extremely appreciate my husband for putting in all the hard work to find the perfect van for us. He also spent his first day off in forever yesterday cleaning the van and making it perfect. I am very lucky!

This summer has been such a joy so far with Jude. He is so much fun now even though he is a complete handful. He talks my ear off daily, always wants to play, still wants to cuddle, and is very honest about his feelings and wants! One very special moment for me this past week was when he put his arms around me and told me I was his best friend. Cry! So sweet! He continues to tell me this about once daily. I will truly treasure his statement as I know he means it now. I also know that it will not last forever and I will be wishing in my heart that he still did see me as his best friend.

26 Weeks with our little girl

25 weeks with Jude

 

Excited about fireworks!

No longer excited about fireworks...

Playing at the Western Roundup

Making mama proud!

Aww! Cousin love.

Learning early!

How far along? 26 weeks and one day

Total weight gain: 15 pounds

Maternity clothes? I am truly enjoying my maternity clothes for the summer because of all the heat. Way more comfortable!

Stretch marks? None that I can tell yet!

Sleep: I seem to be sleeping more through the night overall.

Best moment this week: Feeling her move so much more! I have also enjoyed getting some items purchased for her such as clothes and bedroom decor. Getting our van was exciting too actually.

Miss Anything? My summer wardrobe maybe..

Movement: I feel her multiple times throughout the day.

Food cravings: Nope!

Anything making you queasy or sick: Nope!

Symptoms: Heartburn as eased up a ton (knock on wood), round ligament pain, extra tired

Belly Button in or out? Pretty much in.

Wedding rings on or off?  On and still a little loose.

Looking forward to:Getting started on her bedroom along with the playroom and Jude's room. Also cannot wait for our trip to Florida!

Celebrating Our Little Girl!!

It is official! Our little family will be welcoming home a baby girl this fall. A lot of different emotions came with this knowledge, and in the end we are over come with joy knowing that God has chosen us to be parents to this precious little girl. Deep down I was thinking it would be a girl; a lot of heartburn, a worse 1st trimester, and way more exhaustion all led to that feeling. Despite this "feeling" I could not come out and say it was a girl because I have ALWAYS known I would have boys. As long as I can remember I have always had a feeling I would be the mother to a couple (few) little boys, and I was happy about that. Changing that thinking to having a little girl in our family was just not possible! I have to laugh though because God has once again proven that He has His own plans and I am so thankful for that. There is such a blessing out there to having one of each. I honestly get the best of both worlds this way! Yes, I have my little boy with all of his hugs and kisses and loving on mommy (anyone who has a son knows that special mom/son bond). He loves his trucks and trains and playing sports, and I cannot wait until he is old enough to be cheering him on in the stands. He is a handful and rowdy in ways that I was not prepared for coming from a family of all girls! I love it regardless. Now I get to look forward to a very different kind of bond with our daughter. I know there will be more fights, annoyance, and exasperation along the way with having a daughter. I clearly remember my teenage years :). In the end though I will have this daughter who will come to me for advice and a shoulder to cry on all her years; that is the special mother/daughter bond. Jude will most likely start turning to his dad as he gets older, but I know I will always have her. I will get to help her dress up for her very first dances, help her plan her wedding (if she is willing), and be there for her when she starts her family knowing exactly what she is going through. Only having sons I may have missed out on these experiences. Yes, I may get some help in the wedding, Yes, I will still get to be a grandma to his babies. In the end though I know it will be a bit different being the mother-in-law in his picture. With all this said, I know how truly blessed I am to experience the motherhood of both a boy and a girl. I must have the confidence that God has given me all I need to be the best mother to both of them.

Sweet little face

I am adding a few pictures from our gender reveal party. Needless to say we did have some excited guests as she will be the first little girl in our families. I am pretty sure Jeff is still trying to adjust his mind around having a girl as well (although I think deep down he is pretty excited about "daddy's little girl"). Currently we have had two ultrasounds performed since finding out we are having a daughter. She is growing well and is healthy and we could not be more thankful for that. My placenta was now found to be normal and her femur lengths have now evened out. Lots of prayers and leaning on God helped me through my worries and fears that she may not be developing and growing as needed. With all that said she is still small! Only in the 21st percentile. Once again she is healthy...HEALTHY.  I will still have another growth anatomy scan when I go back in 4 weeks just to be sure she is still growing as much as she needs to be. Here is what I try to keep in mind:

1. Jude was a small baby. I imagine she will be too.
2. Jude's due date kept being pushed back further and further because he was small. He was still very healthy.
3. Nothing wrong with smaller babies right? They sure do make delivery at tad bit easier :).
4. I have nothing to worry about for God is with us. 

How far along? Exactly 24 weeks today

Total weight gain: 12 pounds

Maternity clothes? I am in the in between stage. My maternity clothes are still a little too big but my regular size pants are not buttoning. Belly bands work although I am not the biggest fan of them.

Stretch marks? No.

Sleep: What mom needs sleep???

Best moment this week: Getting to see her again and knowing that we are both healthy. Jude telling the ultrasound tech and doctor that he is having a little sister! :)

Miss Anything? Being able to pick Jude up knowing I will not be sore by the end of the day.

Movement: Quite a bit and all day long.

Food cravings: No.

Anything making you queasy or sick: Nope.

Symptoms: Just the daily heartburn and exhaustion! Plus round ligament pain and back pain.

Belly Button in or out? Still in.

Wedding rings on or off? On.

Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy most of the time! I don't necessarily ever feel moody....just really tired.

Looking forward to: All the summer fun planned with Jude and getting our playroom organized upstairs so we can then start on her bedroom.

20 Weeks! Halfway through!

I have now hit that 20 week mark; the mark that I seem to look forward to the most. Yes, it is the halfway point. Yes, I do often feel much better during this part of my pregnancy. Yes, my belly actually looks pregnant now so people are no longer guessing whether it's a baby or just fat! Besides all of these great milestones during pregnancy, my favorite by far is knowing the gender of our little pumpkin. Boy or girl? He or she? Prince or Princess? Tractors or Tiaras? As you can see, I had many sayings picked out for a potential gender reveal party! We received the news  of our he or she last Friday with our anatomy scan. The answer came quickly as this little one was moving, turning, and wiggling the whole time. Now that we know the gender I am excited to really begin planning. We have another bedroom to get ready and decorate :) One of my favorite things to do!

Right now the gender is our secret. But no worries! We have a small family gender reveal party planned for Sunday and then we can announce!

19 Weeks this time around

19 Weeks with Jude

The anatomy scan went well overall. The baby seems to be growing fine and all parts are there and working. So far our pumpkin is in the 33rd percentile for size which I am not too surprised by. Jude was only a 6 pound baby full term and stayed in the 30th percentile for size until he was 15 months old.  The main concern (which doctor said she was not all that concerned) is that I do have an abnormal placenta which can cause our pumpkin to possibly not grow as well as he or she should. This is all leads back to the questioning we were given by the doctor on how small our first baby was since this one is in the 33rd percentile. Jeff helped to calm me a lot through the news and made me realize that 1. Our baby is just fine and will probably be on the smaller size like Jude. 2. Even if there becomes a problem, God is with us and knows the plan for our pumpkin AND that is ALL that matters!

I know that Jude is going to be an amazing big brother. He loves on so many other kids, especially the younger ones. Sharing is something we are still working on....:)
He is definitely going through a stage right now (at least I'm praying it is only a stage) where he wants mommy ALL the time! He does not like to be left anywhere without me. That includes church, friends' homes, with family..... anywhere. We scream! I mean he really screams and cries and that face gets so red! I am chalking it all up to the fact he senses that the baby is coming and it will all pass. We shall see....
On a positive note, Jude's peanut allergy has gone down! Yea! I'm seriously thinking he could outgrow this by elementary school. Fingers crossed! Of course, we also know he has a minor sesame seed allergy and chickpea allergy. No hummus or peanut butter in our house! Poor Jeff.....

The warmer weather has helped to brighten our moods and home, and had kept us very busy!

How far along? 20 Weeks

Total weight gain: I have gained 8 pounds.

Maternity clothes? No! I'm still squeezing into pretty much everything. A couple of jeans require belly bands.

Stretch marks? Nope.

Symptoms: heartburn, heartburn, and more heartburn!

Sleep: I'm always tired! Like last time, I do not sleep well at night.

Best moment this week: Knowing if our pumpkin is a boy or girl.

Movement: This little one moves a lot! I have felt movement for a couple of weeks now.

Miss Anything? Energy.

Food cravings: Like last time, no cravings.

Anything making you queasy or sick: I still cannot stand the thought of hummus.

Gender: Find out soon enough!!

Looking forward to: Planning everything for the new baby.