30 Weeks - Rounding Third and Heading Home

I can hardly believe that we are already in the third trimester. As much as I want to meet our Luda Bean, I truly do love being pregnant and try to cherish the time that I have with our sweet baby on the inside. Just me and baby loving on each other. I know that life is going to be completely different for all four us come September (or August), so I'm just trying to make the most of every minute. Every minute I have just me and Em, just me and Shawn, just the 3 of us, just me and the Bean. 

Along: 30 weeks (as of yesterday)

30 weeks, 2 days - Post a week at FCA Camp and feeling every bit of those 30 weeks, 2 days!

Size: At this point baby is about 2.75 pounds and 15.75 inches long, roughly the size of a cabbage. Baby is continuing to practice breathing and is starting to have sleep/wake cycles anywhere from 30-90 minutes in length. From this point on baby will gain roughly 1/2 a pound a week, which will hopefully result is a chubby baby for us to love on. 

Total Weight Gain/Loss: As of last Friday I am up 23 pounds.

Gender: As you know by now, we have decided to keep the gender a surprise. As the weeks pass and we get closer to meeting our new little one, the anticipation rises for whether we are going to have another daughter or son. I am so excited to hear Shawn say, "It's a __,", to see this sweet baby's face for the first time and swaddle our little bundle of joy in my arms. 

Movement: Our little Ninja baby is giving Mommy lots of kicks to feel and for the most part lots of kicks to see! I love feeling our baby move.

Sleep: I've definitely had a few nights where sleep as eluded me. I fall asleep fine, but wake up and have difficulty falling back to sleep. Thankfully Em has been taking longer naps in the afternoon, so on those days I have been able to catch a snooze when she does. If I don't, I just pray for energy. 

Cravings: Cravings or just food in general has definitely gotten the best of me. I feel like I am always grabbing for a snack of some sort. I've decided that over the next 10 weeks, I really want to be careful with the food that I am reaching for; trying to eat clean and make good choices, not just for me, but for Shawn, Em and our Luda Bean. 

Symptoms: I've continued to have leg pain, mainly on the right side.  I'm thinking it is because I put a lot of weight on that side, always carrying Em on that hip. It's also the same leg that I am having trouble with my veins, which are starting to get a little painful. I'm trying at this point to remember my compression socks, especially at work and to put my legs up as much as possible. I've also had some sciatic nerve pain which could be a good thing, meaning that the babies head is getting in the right position to make the big debut!

Best Moment of the Week(s): Once again these past weeks have flown by. I can hardly believe just 10 weeks, give or take, until we get to meet our little Miss or Mister. To say the anticipation is building would be an understatement! With that we've had so much fun these last few weeks. We went on our family vacation to Nashville and it was wonderful. The drive was interesting to say the least and I definitely had moments of stress throughout the trip, but I love taking adventures as a family and wouldn't change the memories those adventures bring us for the world. Em loved the Grand Ole Opry, once we found her a place to dance, and we all left Nashville looking a little more country with our 15 pairs of boots. I also had the opportunity to serve at another FCA camp, Power Camp in Fredericksburg, this past week. I loved getting to use my nursing career in a different capacity. Em also got to be a camper for the first time and attended Power Kids. She played with other kids, made crafts and sang songs. I loved picking her up each day and seeing what fun thing she had created. Tomorrow is going to be a fun day as well since my sister-in-law and Mom are having a BabyQ for me and Shawn. I'm excited to celebrate this little Nugget with my friends and family and hoping that the forecast is wrong and we have at least a few dry hours!

"Prep" for # 2: So far I feel like we haven't really done anything to get "prepared" for being parents of two, other than get excited, but we did move some furniture around in the Nursery and in our room to get ready for Luda Bean's arrival. Since the plan is to have our littles share a room, we have make room for baby #2. I'll hopefully have pictures of our updated nursery in the next couple of weeks, along with some storage solutions for having two in one room. 

And that my friends, is a full on outie!

Happy Friday!

She's 18 Months Old; Where is the time going?

To get her to smile we have to say, "Show me your teeth!"

Our sweet girl, 18 months old. It's hard to believe that time is going by so quickly. I feel like I was just holding her in my arms for the first time and now she is running, talking, climbing, mimicking; all the things that make our lives so much more exciting. The amount of joy she brings to our lives is like nothing we ever expected and the challenges, although they seem daunting, have done nothing, but help us grow closer as a couple and as a family. She's a beautiful little girl who in less than 2 1/2 months will be a big sister. So, with that in mind we are soaking up having just her. Watching her closely as she explores and learns. Loving life with just the three of us and anticipating all that is to come when baby #2 makes his/her big debut; something we couldn't be more excited for!

Making a splash in her pool. 

Likes: Music. This girl doesn't just like music, she loves music. She loves to listen to it, sign along with it and dance. Hence while she had such a good time at the Opry; after we found her a spot that she could stand and dance around in that is. Sitting still is not her favorite. She loves to read books and some of my favorite little moments are just before bed time when she sits in my lap and lets me read to her. She loves to pretend, and we have tea parties and doctor check-ups almost daily. Dobby, Goofy, Minnie Mouse and now Donald are her favorite toys/babies to carry around. And speaking of babies, she loves to check on the baby and give the baby hugs and kisses. Her vocabulary is expanding and she loves to make animal noises. My favorite is her monkey impression. Tossing balls back and forth, blowing bubbles, playing in her car, climbing the playground and swimming are her favorite outdoor activities. She still likes having her pacifier, which we haven't decided when we are going to take away and she loves to snuggle, especially on the couch after bath time watching Disney with Dad. And last but not least, this girl likes testing the limits. She has this way of pushing to do what she wants, that is so sassy it's sweet. For instance, holding her food off her tray and looking me in the eye before she drops it and says. "uh oh!" All of course while having a look of shock on her face, like the food just jumped out of her hand! She definitely makes it hard for us to stay mad.

As far as sleep, teeth and food; she sleeps consistently from 7p-6a and takes a 2-3 hour nap in the afternoon, most days. She has 15 teeth and is working on her 16th; all she needs now are her 2nd set of molars. She's an eater, for the most part, although she has trouble with sauces because we just haven't given them to her. Some of her favorites are yogurt, blueberries, strawberries, most fruits really, green beans, corn, waffles, bread and fish. While we were in TN she had her first encounter with wild game, and she demolished alligator. We try and expose her to new tastes and flavors, but she still has her stable favorites.

Demolishing gator in TN!

Dislikes: She is not a fan of diaper changes. I'm not sure where we went wrong here, but she is always rolling or kicking her legs when we try to change her. You'd think she'd like having a clean bum. Being told no, having to come inside and getting in the car seat are also times that we can expect some act of disapproval.

Height: 32 1/2 inches

Weight: 24 pounds 7 ounces

Diapers: Size 4

Clothes: 18-24 month or 2T

Our girl is a ball of energy. She's a lover and a fighter, something that I think will serve her well, and I am so proud to call her my baby girl.

Snacking and watching Disney.

 

Weeks 26 & 27 - Round TWO!

Along: We'll be 27 Weeks on Thursday. I'm going for a mid-week post since I have the time to write today!

I thought it was time for a comparison shot...
From what I can tell I am a bit bigger and much more round with Luda Bean...or I could blame it on the lightening and the fact that I am wearing white. But seriously, who am I kidding, there's a healthy growing baby in there!

26 weeks, 6 days with Luda Bean

26 and 27 Weeks with EPL

Size: Over the last two weeks baby has been growing and so have I! During our last I was measuring right on track at 26 weeks which makes me feel like baby is going to be bigger than his/her Big Sister, since she consistently measured a week behind. The nerves in Baby's ears are better developed and becoming more sensitive to sound, so Bean is not only hearing my voice, but he or she may be able to pick up on the voices of those I am having conversation with, like Daddy's and Big sisters. Which is a good thing, because they both love talking to the Baby. Sweet baby's lungs are also becoming more and more developed as practice breathing is occurring with Bean breathing amniotic fluid in and out. By the end of the week Bean will be weighing roughly 2 pounds and measuring about 14 1/2 inches long. Our sweet baby's eyes are starting to open and shut and sleep is starting to occur at regular intervals...lets just hope those cycles are occurring as they should, awake during the day and sleeping at night. 

Total Weight Gain/Loss: I came in at about 20 pounds last Thursday. The pounds have definitely been rising, but I just keep telling myself that I am having a big baby. ;)

Gender: We're still having a lot of people that are guessing boy. At my last OB appointment Baby's heart rate was 137, which is lower than with Em's, so maybe that's a sign that we are having a boy, maybe not. Either way my guess is still girl. I think it would be so fun to have sisters growing up close in age, but I also think that having a baby boy would be whole new adventure for us. Either way, we are just so, so excited to give Em a sibling. Luda Bean we are so excited to meet you!

Movement: We are loving all the movements, a lot of which we can see. Sweet baby even had the hiccups for the first time this week! At least it was the first time I noticed them.

Sleep: Sleep is my favorite and most days I feel like I get a enough, but there have been a few days this week where I was just exhausted and couldn't sleep often or long enough!

Cravings: I think I am going to go with Nutella. I love really like it and have started the habit of putting it on my waffles in the morning, but it is just fine right off the spoon as well!

Symptoms: I've had sore muscles in my legs and feet and a bit of heartburn, but nothing major. 

Best Moment of the Week: These last two weeks have been so busy, we celebrated the holiday with my parents and Em had her first swimming experience in their pool, which she loved despite it's freezing temperatures. I passed my glucose test! YAY! And then over this past weekend I was in North East, Maryland serving as the camp nurse for FCA Leadership Camp. Luke, had asked me a couple weeks ago if I would volunteer and I loved having the opportunity to use my nursing skills for the Lord. We also have so many things that we are looking forward to this week and next, starting with Shawn and I going to a baseball game on Thursday and then next week we have our Anniversary/Maternity photography session with the ever talented Abby Grace Monday, a date night Tuesday,  we leave for Nashville Wednesday and our 5 Year Anniversary is that Friday! Busy, Busy, but so many things to be thankful for. :)

Happy Tuesday!