31 weeks!

We have a crib in Little Luda's nursery!

Update on our October goals. So far Little Luda and I have gone only 12 miles, not as far as I would have liked, but with moving (yes MOVING) we have not had the time we would have like for designated walks/jogs. However, moving while 31 weeks pregnant is definitely a workout! My legs are sore and my back is more achy than usual.

Along: 31 weeks! Little Luda is the size of a coconut!

Size: This week Nugget is measuring over 16 inches, weighs about 3 1/3 pound and is apparently heading into a growth spurt! He or she can move his or her head from side to side and that adorable little body is starting to put on some chub.

Total Weight Gain/Loss: 18 pounds as of yesterday! We had another appointment and Little Luda is looking perfect! Measuring right on target with a heartbeat of 150. 

Maternity Clothes: Mixture of both. On Sunday the dresses I had to wear to church were slim pickings, so I opted to wear one that I knew would work and has survived all 3 Trimesters of this pregnancy. I bought it well before I knew I was pregnant, so I'd say it was a good purchase!

Gender: We're down to single digit weeks until we meet our Nugget! Can't wait!

Movement: Tons of movement and I love it. Little Luda seems to be getting a little more aggressive in there with his or her movements, I think we are going to have an active one on our hands. At my appointment yesterday my NP commented on just how active our Nugget is. She also noted that with movement Little Luda's heart rate goes up, which is a good thing!

Sleep:  Sleep has been pretty good this week, minus a few rough nights. I just try to take advantage of downtime whenever I can get it. Hopefully this coming week I will get a little more time to rest.

Cravings: Chips, Bananas and Ice Cream. 

Symptoms: Heartburn and back pain, which I am pretty sure I did to myself. My hips are still bothering me, mainly when I go to lay down and I'm having some sciatic nerve pain. Nothing this Mommy can't handle though. I take each symptom as a sign of a healthy, growing Nugget! 

Best Moment of the Week: God answered our prayers and on Monday evening we closed on our home and were able to stay the night for the first time in our First Home! We were so overjoyed with all the help that we received. I'll do a full recap of how everything occurred early next week, but for now here's a picture of the very happy Homeowners! 

Loading 75%! (And this weeks Trials and Blessings)

I want to start off by saying that I have some goals for the month of October. Number 1, get more rest before I have to go into work. I was reminded this week by a co-worker that I don't have to be super mom and it's OK to be tired. With that being said, I'm going to make more of an effort to rest when I need it, even though I already feel like I "rest" quite often. And although Number 2 may seem like I contradiction to number 1, I'm making it a goal to walk/jog 50 miles with the Nugget this month. I feel so much better on days that I am able to get out there and get moving, so I'm going to keep on keeping on as long as Little Luda lets me and of course do lots of resting too! ; )

Along: 30 weeks! Little Luda is the size of a cabbage.

Size: This week Nugget is measuring 15.7 in and weighing just about 2.75 pounds. Little Luda's face is starting to look like what he or she will look like when born, but definitely still has some chub to gain. The Nugget can move his or her head, open his or her eyes, and make breathing movements. Although Little Luda would have a good chance for survival if he or she were born today, we prefer to let the Nugget bake to his or her fullest potential, so bake, baby bake!

Total Weight Gain/Loss: My guess would be between 17 to 18 pounds. I feel like every scale tells me something different, but the one that counts is the doctor's. I have another appointment next week, so we will have another official number then!

Maternity Clothes: Mixture of both. I have a few tops, dresses and skirts that I purchased before pregnancy that are working well for my new body, but when it comes to pants, maternity jeans all the way!

Gender: 10 weeks until the big reveal...I really can't wait to hold Little Luda in my arms for the very first time, boy or girl. 

Movement: We have movement all day long. On Tuesday, Shawn thought it would be fun to poke the Nugget and wait for the baby to react. I love watching him interact with my tummy and I know that I am going to love it even more once Little Luda is here with us.

Sleep: I'm happy to say that my streak of good sleep seems to be continuing. I may not stay asleep as long as I'd like, I'm making regular trips to the bathroom these days, but when I do sleep, I sleep soundly and that I am thankful for. However, no amount of sleep seems to be enough. It seems like the third trimester exhaustion may be hitting me a little earlier than I'd like. 

Cravings: Milk and Ice Cream, which is most likely why I'm feeling super full all the time and like I have put on a few more pounds that I should have in the last couple weeks. I also remembered just how much I love candy corn this week while I was at work. Looks like I am going to have to stock up for the fall season! And I can't forget ice water, I love having something cold to drink!

Symptoms: Heartburn, hip and back pain, and a tight, full belly. Most of these "symptoms" only occur at night and are pretty tolerable.  As I always say, we just want a healthy Nugget, so I'll take the symptoms. 

Best Moment of the Week: Sometimes the "best moment" isn't always the easiest moment. This week has been hard to say the least, but in the midst of all the hard, God continues to remind me of all the good. Wednesday we were originally scheduled to close on our home, but we found out earlier in the week, that the date would not be attainable and we were hoping for Thursday. Then on Wednesday, we found out the Thursday too, was a no go. I was a wreck, I cried a lot, but through every moment of the day, I knew that God was in control. It was hard to see that. Shawn and I had been looking forward to this day since we started building in April and for the day to come and pass was a bit devastating to me. Thankfully, I married a man of action and I watched as he worked tirelessly to do what was best for our little family. I watched him fight for us, even though we were fighting something that we had no control over, "our part" of the closing process had been completed for some time. He handled every conversation with such grace and patience and even though I didn't want to hear it, he continually reminded me that everything was going to work out as it was intended to, I just had to be patient and pray. So that's what we did. We walked, talked, prayed and I listened on, a very proud, pregnant and emotional wife, as Shawn had conversation after conversation working hard to make whatever part of the process he could handle as smooth as possible. As of tonight we are still waiting word on when we will be able to close on our home. It's hard for us to understand just how this first home buying chapter in our lives is going to end, but we know that God is not surprised by any of this and that we can only hope and pray as we play the waiting game.

In the midst of my hurting, I listened to this song. It was a song I had heard before, but was brought to my attention a couple weeks ago by my dear friend, who has been such a support though this whole process...so much so that we've been living with them for the last 2 months. I know that this scenario, may not seem that bad, but the truth is, I have been tired. Tired of talking to loan officers and worrying about interest rates and closing costs. Trust me, I hear myself, expecting my first little blessing in December whose Daddy has been the perfect husband for me and purchasing a home are both WONDERFUL things, but with these wonderful things, comes a certain amount stress. I just want everything to be perfect, but like me, everything isn't always perfect, at least by my standards, but God is perfect. And His plan for Me, Shawn and Little Luda is perfect. So with that being said, I know that God will win out in every scenario. That in trusting Him, he can put together all the pieces of me that feel broken and exhausted from this trial and make it a blessing. 

Celebrating Baby E! : )

On Saturday Little Luda and I got to celebrate Little Luda's baby "Bestie." My good friend Liz is exactly 5 weeks ahead of me in her pregnancy and Saturday was her big shower day! It was a perfect day and we loved getting to show Liz just how much she means to us. Being able to experience this journey together has been such a blessing and I'm looking forward to discovering how to do this, "Mommy thing," with an AMAZING friend by my side. 

Here are some shots from her shower:

 

Lots of Yummy Treats!

 

All the little details were perfect!

 

 

 

Baby E's gender is a surprise too! Boy or Girl, we will find out soon!

 

Gifts, gifts, gifts!

 

 

Love this Lady!

 

Baby E (34 weeks!) and Little Luda (29 weeks!)

 

Lovely Ladies! (Liz and Jess and 3 Mommies-to-Be!)



 

Liz and the two lovely hostesses, Nicole and Elise did a beautiful job!

 

Happy Monday Everyone!

29 Weeks!

Hello Belly Button!

Little Luda is definitely growing in there!

Along: 29 weeks! Our butternut squash! : )

Size: Little Luda is 2.5 pounds and just over 15 inches long. Our Nugget's muscles and lungs are continuing to grow and his/her head is growing bigger to make room for that developing brain. You know Little Luda is going to be  a smart cookie, just like Mom and Dad! ; )

Total Weight Gain/Loss: The official number is 14 pounds according to my appointment that I had late this morning. I'm thinking more like 15 to 16 pounds. Little Luda's heart rate was nice and strong and I'm measuring just shy of 29 weeks, so the doctor doesn't seem concerned, which makes me happy!
Maternity Clothes: Still using a mixture of both.

Gender: The big reveal is quickly approaching! I can't wait to see our Nugget's face!

Movement: As active as ever! I've also started to notice that Little Luda gets the hiccups pretty frequently and considering I get them every other day, this doesn't surprise me!

Sleep: This week it has actually been pretty good. Since I have been off from work I have been able to make time to sleep as much as possible and of course take tons of power naps.

Cravings: Food. I have been eating a lot lately, which explains the weight gain. Trying to keep my choices balanced, but it was hard for me before pregnancy so I don't know what made me think it would be easier when I was pregnant.

Symptoms: Still having hip and back pain, but other than that I have felt great this week!

Best Moment of the Week: This week has been fabulous and of course has flown by. So much went on in the last 7 days, that I'm just going to give a brief recap of all our activities. On Friday we drove down to Fredericksburg and got to watch Allison cheer at her high school football game. The cougars won and Allison did an awesome job cheering them onto victory! On Saturday morning Little Luda and I ran a 5K with my brother, Luke, and his soon to be wife, Katie. We finished in just under 35 minutes and I have to admit I was pretty impressed with myself. After the race, Katie and I drove down to Raleigh, North Carolina for my cousin Jennifer's bachelorette party. We had a great time celebrating her and her upcoming marriage to Mr. Casey Thompson. I have to admit though, I LOVED all the girl time that Katie and I shared during our 7 hours of driving. Lets just say I am really lucky to be calling her my sister! On Sunday, we spent time with family at my parents house, watched the Skins game ( 0-3...not the best start) and then drove to our townhouse which is finished! Shawn and I got to walk through it completely finished together for the first time and we didn't want to leave, it's perfect and seeing it complete made it really feel like home. The official final walk through was on Monday and it's hard to believe that we go to closing NEXT WEEK!

Tuesday was my birthday and I felt so blessed and loved. I had breakfast with my birthday twin and roomie, Nicole and then went off to a Mommy-to-be massage that Nicole blessed me with. It was fabulous and I definitely hinted to Shawn that I may need another before the end of this pregnancy. That evening Shawn and I went out to dinner and just reflected on all that God has done in our lives this past year. If I had asked myself 5 years ago if I thought I'd be married to my best friend with our first blessing on the way and getting ready to close on our first home, I probably would have laughed, but God is good and he has truly blessed us. This past year I feel like I have changed so much and I know that God has so much in store for me.

Here's to starting year 26 off with a bang!

With all that was going on I didn't do a good job at taking pictures, but I did take a few pictures of Luke and Katie for Luke's FCA brochure. So here's a look at the beautiful couple!

Hello Third Trimester

Sorry this is coming out a day late, my pregnant brain got distracted yesterday and didn't get around to uploading pictures until today, so here we go!

Shawn took these last night before an impromptu dinner date, look at the belly!

Along: 28 weeks!

Size: Little Luda is about 2 1/4 pounds, measures about 14.8 inches and is the size of a large eggplant. Our Nugget is able to blink his or her eyes and billions of neurons are developing in Little Luda's brain. Our Nugget is also packing on the fat in preparation for the outside world. Hopefully we have a chunky monkey, because it's going to be cold when our precious baby makes his or her appearence into the world! 12 weeks and counting!

Total Weight Gain/Loss: My guess would be 15 pounds.

Maternity Clothes: I'm down to only wearing maternity pants. I actually tried to put on my regular skinny jeans, just to see, and Shawn and I both had a good laugh. I got them on, but zipping them up all the was was an impossibilty. With that being said, I can still wear a mixture of maternity and non-maternity tops and most of my non-maternity dresses still fit, so for now, we have wardrope options...for now. : )

Gender: I really have no idea at this point and usually I don't even think about it unless someone asks, which happens a lot these days because there is no hiding that I have a baby growing in my tummy. Even the kids at work are starting to be bold and ask, "Is there a baby in your tummy?" It's the sweetest thing.

Movement: Tons and tons and I LOVE it! I'm starting to see body parts rub across my belly and it is just wild. Definitely the most amazing feeling in the world.

Sleep: It's been hit or miss this past week, but today starts a 7 day stretch of days off from the hospital, so hopefully I will be able to do some catching up.

Cravings: Anything banana ( I FINALLY got my banana milkshake), celery and

Symptoms: I wake up most mornings/evenings with hip pain, but usually once I get moving and the Nugget does a little moving around in there, the pain subsides. I definitely seem to be carrying low. I've also had a few days of pain shooting down my left leg, aka Sciatic Nerve pain, I'm hoping that this isn't something that becomes a regular occurance, but if it does, I'll take it for a healthy baby!

Best Moment of the Week: On Saturday we got to celebrate our favorite "Little Roomie" turning 1! It has been such a joy living with our friends and seeing all the love that they share between the 3 of them as a family. I can only hope that our Little Luda is just as fun-loving as our "Little Roomie!" Here's a cute shot that Shawn took before the party started...he was practicing his serious face!







The Baby Besties (Liz 33 weeks, Me 28 weeks)

Our hilarious husbands, wanted a picture taken with their,"bumps!" (Tom and Shawn)

27 Weeks!

Along: 27 weeks, which means...1 week until the 3rd trimester, 10 weeks until full-term, and 13 weeks until our due date! We can do this Little Luda!

Size: Little Luda is the size of a head of cauliflower coming in at about 14.5 inches long and weighing just about 2 lbs! Our Nugget looks like a thinner, redder, more wrinkled version of what he or she will look like when it's time for us to meet! Over the next few weeks our Nugget is going to start packing on the chub...bring on the chunky cheeks! Little Luda's immune system is also continuing to mature and he or she is still practicing breathing amniotic fluid. Grow baby, grow!

Total Weight Gain/Loss: 13 pounds as of yesterday. I think a lot of it has to do with water weight because I was thinking I'd be closer to the 14/15 pound mark. With that being said, the doctor's seem to be OK with that number for now, so I am too. Whatever the number has to be for a healthy Little Luda is fine by me!

Maternity Clothes: Still using a mixture, but I do LOVE maternity jeans! They are so comfy!

Gender: At this weeks appointment the heartbeat was 143, so based on that it is looking like Little Luda may be a boy. Only time will tell!

Movement: We definitely have an active one! Yesterday I had my glucose tolerance test, which wasn't nearly as bad as it was hyped up to be, and I'm pretty sure the Nugget was on a sugar high ALL day and I loved all the extra movement!

Sleep: Lets just say I think pregnancy is preparing me for sleepless nights.

Cravings: Unfortunately sweets, but I'm trying to stay balanced and make sure I am eating plenty of fruits, veggies and protein!

Symptoms: Back, butt and hip pain all of which is contributing to my sleepless nights. Heartburn hasn't been as bad this week, but it usually gets worse on the nights that I am working, so we'll see what happens this weekend!

Best Moment of the Week: Saturday I got to attend Megan's, my college roommate/bridesmaid/close friend, baby shower. She will be welcoming her first bundle of joy, a little girl named Harper, at the end of the month! It was so fun to celebrate her new addition and I know that she is going to be a FANTASTIC mommy. I was also able to see my close friend/bridesmaid Vanessa. Being able to catch up with these girls, even just for a little bit, was such a blessing and I am so thankful that I have lifelong friendships in them! Here are a few shots from her baby shower:

 

Vanessa, Megan and Me

Megan 36 weeks, Me 26 weeks

26 weeks! Cool as a Cucumber : )

I've been cool as a cucumber...or at least I'm trying to be!

Pregnancy has been a scary thing for me. Since the moment we found out we were expecting I have been in constant prayer for peace and comfort. That God would take away my fears and anxieties, knowing that He was the one who had blessed us with Little Luda and who's control my entire pregnancy is in. It's not always easy and honestly there are days where all I can do is worry, but I know that God has His hands wrapped around our little blessing and that no matter what is in store for us, that God is good...all the time.

 

Along: 26 weeks! We're into double digit days! 

Size: Little Luda is 14 inches long and weighs 1.75 lb, about the size of a hothouse cucumber. Grow baby, grow! Our Nugget's brain and lungs are much more developed and it is likely that our baby can now detect light and dark through the optic nerve. Our baby can also hear more and may even be able to hear Shawn's voice as he talks/sings to Little Luda! In terms of our little one's lungs, he or she is continuing to inhale and exhale small amounts of amniotic fluid which is good practice for when Little Luda takes that first gulp of air! 

Total Weight Gain/Loss: I'm going to say 12-13 pounds. I have my glucose test next week and will continue to go to my OB every 2 weeks, so I will have another official number then. My belly is definitely growing though and even strangers are starting to feel the need to touch it. Most of the time this doesn't bother me, but sometimes it can be a little overwhelming. Maybe I should buy the shirt I saw that says, "Unless you put it there, don't touch it!" 

Maternity Clothes: Still using a mixture of both. Most of my pre-pregnancy clothes that still work have some form of stretch to them. 

Gender: I feel like I may be having a change of heart. Which all the blue energy being thrown my way, I can't help but think that we may have a baby boy growing in my tummy. Either way I got a 50/50 shot of being right. One thing I do know, Little Luda is going to adorable and so loved.

Movement: I love feeling our Nugget move. This past week at church we had an entire service of worship, which the whole Ludeker family, including Little Luda, LOVED. Our Nugget didn't stop moving the entire service and loved the idea that Little Luda was worshiping right along with Mommy and Daddy!

Sleep: I honestly can't remember the last time I slept through the night. With the trips to the bathroom and now back/hip pain, I just don't think it is going to happen again for me for a while. With that being said...I LOVE morning, afternoon, evening, basically anytime naps!

Cravings: Cereal (especially anything cinnamon flavored), Frozen Yogurt, Fresh Veggies/Fruit and Pizza. I've also been craving a banana milkshake for a long time and have yet to satisfy that craving...maybe this weekend I will make it happen! On another note, I have been feeling increasingly guilty with my food choices. I've always been one to eat and eat a lot, so I don't know how I expected that to change when I got pregnant. Either way I know that I need to make healthy choices for me and Little Luda, so here's to hoping I can do just that over the next 14 weeks. I don't want anyone to hold me accountable though. ;)

Symptoms: The usual heartburn, leg cramps and small bladder.This week I also started having some lower back pain and hip pain. I know part of that has to do with long nights of work and not stretching properly, so hopefully I can modify my stretch routine and help a little bit with the muscle pain. If that doesn't work, my birthday is coming up, so maybe I can convince someone to schedule me a prenatal massage...O, Shawn! ;)

Best Moment of the Week: I'm not sure if this was my "best" moment, but it was a funny moment that I shared with my Hubby. On Labor Day we decided that it would be a good idea to go for a bike ride. I haven't been on a "real" bike since being pregnant, I've ridden stationary bikes at the gym, but I didn't think anything of it. Little did I know that my equilibrium was going to be WAY off. In an attempt to brake, I instead slowly rolled right into a ditch, but I did have time to get both feet on the ground and cause no harm to myself or our Nugget. However, after that Shawn made me practice braking before I we got on the trail with all the legit bikers. He kept saying he felt like he was teaching his child to ride a bike again. Once I got back in the swing of things, I was fine and me and Little Luda survived our first bike ride together. I think it might have been harder on Daddy than on me though!
 

Hope you have a great weekend!