Big Brother

Ever since Christmas Eve, we've had a steady stream of illness running through our house.  I think we had a 3 day break between the Christmas illnesses (which had all 3 of us sick with different things) and this latest round.  Geeze!  So that's partly why I'm so behind on this blog.  About 4 weeks ago I got sick with a cold that quickly spread to Justin and Parker 2 days before we left town... because of course, Parker ALWAYS gets sick 2 days before we leave town.  I'm not complaining, just stating the facts.  

We left for a 9 day trip to Colorado which included a week up at Breckenridge.  Pictures are coming... maybe later today or tomorrow but for now, here's a glimpse of our cute kiddo sharing our big news with the all the Grandparents :)

Baby #2 is coming late July!  I'm 16 weeks pregnant and still somewhat in shock that another baby is coming... but we're so excited and have been blessed with a much easier pregnancy this time around :)

HE'S HERE!!!

Baby Boy is here!!!  We're still debating if we're going to put his name public on our blog... but he arrived October 23rd and 7:03pm.  He weighed 6lb 10 oz and was 20 inches long.  We're overwhelmed and so thankful for this precious little boy.  

40 Weeks

Yesterday was Baby Boy's due date.  Apparently he didn't get the memo.  I'm still pregnant and swelling more by the day.  I didn't think it was possible to put on weight so quickly.  This morning I learned otherwise.  How exactly does one put 4 lbs on in 10 days?!?  Seriously, I keep expecting to find stretch marks on my hands and feet they're so big!  Ha.  How sad would it be if I survived this entire pregnancy with no stretch marks on my belly, just my hands?!  HA!

I discovered this morning that my husband's wedding ring (2.5 sizes larger than mine) is almost too tight.  I laughed so hard when I discovered that!  My ankle bones are gone and my feet look like two pancakes.  The only reason I've maintained my sense of humor these last two weeks is because my wonderful doctor and the deadline she offered.  My body is making NO progress towards having this little boy anytime soon... so Thursday night I'll head to the hospital and hopefully Friday morning the induction will begin.  WOW.  We're really having a baby!

So this week will be spent cooking and finishing up little things around the house.  My mom and aunt are here and waiting.  Justin had a silly grin on his face that said "I'm smiling but on the inside I'm freaking out."  Only a few more days until we have this Baby Boy in our arms!

Those ARE NOT My Hands...

I've officially hit the point in this pregnancy when I can say "I'M DONE".  It was so great to have some ladies just pray for me yesterday in church... because right now, 2 weeks seems so far away.

I'm 38 weeks pregnant and I'm done.  I want this baby boy in my arms and not in my belly... and especially not on my bladder or in my ribs (which he has rediscovered with every stretch)!  My OB is so wonderful and assured me I'm at the worst point in pregnancy.  The point when every nasty symptom is amplified... and that I just need to survive it.

I woke up yesterday feeling like I had resumed running and never stretched out.  Turns out the swelling has expanded into my calves... and they are so sore.  My wonderful husband was rubbing them last night and it was written all over his face... the "Oh my gosh are you swollen!".  Even my toes are looking like marshmellows.  I love marshmellows... but not this way.  We won't even discuss how horribly swollen my hands are.  I can't even pop my knuckles due to all the swelling.  Sigh.

NO, I'm not one of those pregnant women who "has never felt more beautiful"!  I'm with my friend Tara... I have felt WAY more beautiful.  I have 2 shirts I can fit in right now... that's right, 2... so I'm leaving in tank tops and honestly... I don't care if my bra strap does show with them!  I don't consider myself high maintenance... but I would like a little more choice.

My husband had this relieved look on his face as he headed out the door for work this Friday morning.  A look that says "I'm going to leave now... why don't you take a nap or something."  I fought the urge to blame him for "doing this to me"... and I have never done this before (I've maintained it was a team effort... but the team isn't suffering).  Yes, I was angry at him... because he got sleep and isn't dealing with raging hormones.  Because he can tie his own shoe... and because he doesn't have to pray that he doesn't have an "accident" every time he sneezes.

So... I've officially given Baby Boy his eviction notice.  He has until his due date to vacate and if he fails to do so, we'll be talking to the doctor on the 18th about evicting him.  You know I'm desperate when I went and bounced on a friends trampoline on Saturday!  Ha.  Fat girl bouncing.  I'm sure it was a sight for the neighbors.

REALLY Pregnant

Only 18 days remaining before my due date!  If it weren't for the swelling... I would be feeling pretty good.  However, I've reached the "I'm done" point... and I'm just praying this little boy comes early.  SO... what to do when all those "I'm so pregnant" moments arise?  Cry or laugh?  I've just been laughing myself silly and thought, why not share :)

Here's my current list of "You know you're REALLY pregnant when..."

1.)  You've given up on the regular bathroom stalls and go straight to the handicap stall because it's easier to close the door without hitting your stomach.

2.)  Your hands are no longer recognizable... well, maybe that's not entirely true.  You can swear you saw similar paws at your last troop to the big cat cages at the zoo.

3.)  You go to put on a pair of sneakers and with some help of Crisco you manage to slide into them... and as long as you don't have to try and walk, you're good.

4.)  You can only squeeze into 1 (or maybe 2) of your husbands t-shirts... which were HUGE on you just a few months ago...

5.)  Since lounging around in your husband's t-shirts is no longer possible, you head to the closet to get dressed and are faced with the tough decision of shirts that are too short or shirts that are even shorter.  So you close your eyes, grab a shirt and spend the rest of the day walking around with your ginormous elastic waistband showing.

6.)  You feel like a Biggest Loser Contestant every week when you step on the scale and watch as the numbers jump around.  You hold your breathe, pray for a good number to come up... and then want to cry when you see the final number (while muttering under your breathe that the scale is a liar).

7.)  You can no longer bend over to dry your own feet.  Oh yes, it happened.

8.)  You find yourself walking into things... and wondering where this big belly came from that is now in your way.

9.)  (NOTE: Even though I'm not suppose to... I have been sleeping on my back.  I start on my side but roll to my back while sleeping)  You try to get out of bed (for one of the countless nightly potty trips)... only to resemble a cockroach.  You know, all fours up in the air, grasping at the air as it will somehow help you heave ho off your back and into the vertical position.

10.)  You swear if one more person comments on how swollen your ankles are... you're going to comment on their ankles!

11.)  You sit on the edge of the tub (to wash your feet before going to bed... a necessity after wearing flip flops all day) only to nearly roll off the edge like Humpty Dumpty when you try to reach your foot.

12.)  You realize your abs have never been so firm in your life.  Not a 6 pack... but they're rock hard without the inconvenience of daily sit ups.

So what were your "I'm REALLY pregnant" moments???

36 Weeks...

We're getting so close!!!  We just took this picture today so I'm 36 1/2 weeks pregnant and counting.  Baby Boy is quickly running out of room but praise God, Baby Boy started to drop about 2 weeks ago so I have finally been able to breathe!  Yay!  For a while there I had to choose between food and breathing... Guess which I chose ;) Then I would spend an hour or so barely able to move from the shortness of breathe!  Ha ha.

We're still working on the nursery and hopefully will have it complete before he comes.  I'll post pictures once it's complete but I love how it's turning out!  Baby clothes are washed and his stuff is packed for the hospital.  Justin has been wonderful in helping me get stuff done around the house... and rubs my legs every night... despite the fact that somedays, my feet look like they belong to Fred Flinstone!  Ha.  Last night he had this look on his face (I think I was groaning as I tried to find a position to sleep in that didn't hurt)... and when I asked him what was wrong he said, "I just feel so bad for everything you're body is going through."  Awww.  Such a sweet husband!  We still can't believe we're about to have a baby!

Growing Baby Boy

WOW!  I can't believe how long it's been since I was on here.  It has been an incredibly busy and transient summer.  We arrived back in Virginia a few weeks ago and have been trying to get unpacked (and get internet connected)... but things are starting to settle down and I'm going to try to catch up now.  I have a bunch of pictures from our cross country trip that I need to upload... but for now, here's some pictures of our growing Baby Boy.

28 weeks Pregnant

34 weeks pregnant

I'm almost 36 weeks now!  We're getting so close!!!  I'm feeling pretty good.  Not sleeping well and absolutely exhausted... oh, and my hands swell terribly every night while I'm sleeping so I wake up with man hands!  Ha ha.  Baby Boy is super active still and I've learned to love all those kicks... even the persistent rib kicks ;) 

Anyway, I need to go do some cleaning and laundry before my hubby gets home.  More to follow...

Nesting... If Only I Had A Nest

Baby Boy has been busy growing!  I'm just over 25 weeks now and every day I'm amazed at how big my belly looks (and how flat my belly button has gotten!).  I haven't been consistent about taking belly photos... mainly because there wasn't much of a belly but my mom has insisted (or maybe demanded is a more accurate term) monthly belly photos... so here goes.  This photo was taken at 24 weeks.  Yes, I know I look tired.  I am tired.  This move has worn me out!  I don't know who said "the camera puts on 10 lbs" because I don't feel the camera is acurately reflecting how big I feel!  LOL. 

We've gotten the name narrowed down to 2 names... but we're not telling :)  We're going to wait until Baby Boy is born to decide which name best fits him.  He's one active baby who already has his days and nights reversed.  Every night as I'm trying to get comfortable and fall asleep, he wakes up and begins kicking, rolling, and bouncing.  He absolutely hates any pressure on my belly (such as the seat belt) and kicks at it until I move it.  Sigh.  He also likes to wake me up in the middle of the morning when he's hungry.  Personally, I think 3am is a terrible time to be eating... but he kicks me until I get up and eat... and then settles back down.  We're praying he doesn't have my fiesty spirit!  Ha.

I've been learning the importance of drinking enough water after struggling with weak and faint spells for about 2 weeks.  Yuck.  I wasn't drinking any where near enough but didn't realize that was the problem so last week we ended up in L&D after I had a spell while driving.  Baby Boy put on quite the show and spent the entire 5 hours kicking the monitors.  We had to ask the nurses to turn down the volume because every time he kicked the monitor (which was at least every other minute), the static would blast us out.  The ultrasound technician was quite entertained by how active he was (at 11:30pm).  She almost couldn't get the pictures she needed because he wouldn't hold still!  It was so amazing to see his little foot (repeatedly kicking me).  I'm amazed that even though it's so small, it's perfectly formed.  We also found out that he was already "practice breathing" (at 24 weeks) and definitely a boy!  Ha ha. 

We spent the 4th of July holiday traveling to see family.  My aunt and uncle who live in Sacramento flew down to San Diego and we met up for the weekend.  It was our once last Hoorah before we head to Virginia.  We had a great time visiting with them, listening to patriotic music and walking around the downtown. 

Sunday morning we headed to see my other aunt and uncle who live in Laguna Beach.  We walked down the hill and watched the fireworks that evening... which was great but I have to say, I miss the firework displays that are choreographed to patriotic music.  Anyway, we also got some new furniture for Baby Boy (and any other children the Lord blesses us with).  My aunt and uncle have 2 granddaughters who they decorated a trunk, table and 4 chairs for... but the girls have outgrown the furniture... so they gave it to us!  It's SOOO cute!  Don't you just love it?!?  My aunt loves to paint so the trunk is a combination of stickers (that have been epoxied over) and painting.  The chairs and table are still wrapped up so I didn't get any photos of them but it's the same "Safari" theme.  We're thinking this will go in the family room.  It will be a great way to keep the baby toys from taking over the family room and hopefully our house won't look like a daycare.  Ha ha.  

I can't wait to have a house to nest in!  Sigh.  While the hotel is nice... the thoughts of a nursery our dancing through my mind.  I keep wondering what the room will look like, how big it will be, windows, etc.  I'm already feeling nervous about finding a place quickly when we get to Virginia.  We know what part of town we want to live in... we're just praying for guidance as we start searching.

While I don't know what the nursery will look like... I do know what crib bedding I'm getting.  I always thought it would be fun to do a vintage airplane theme for a little boy.  About a year ago I found this metal plane and decided to buy it confident that some day, the Lord would give us a son :)  I found this bedding and fell in love with the colors and the planes!  Our crib is chocolate color but I think it will look good with this bedding.  Of course, I don't have a mailing address right now, so I'm not so patiently waiting until we get to Virginia to order it.  Sigh.  I think the nesting has kicked in but I don't have a nest!

20 Week Ultrasound

Tuesday was the big 20 week anatomy scan.  Last time I saw the baby on an ultrasound was the 7th week of pregnancy when the baby looked like a blob.  Honestly, back then I couldn't tell that it was even a baby except for the little pulsing heart.  What a difference a few months makes :)  The first thing we saw were vertebrae... lots of them! WOW!  I'm very much a Type A who loves to plan and prepare so we definitely wanted to find out the gender... and fortunately the baby cooperated.

This is my favorite picture... BABY BOY trying to find his thumb!

Yesterday we had a Level 2 Ultrsound... it's a long story why that I'm not going to go into.  Level 2 ultrasounds are a higher resolution and check the baby's systems much closer.  They were able to confirm that it is without a doubt a little boy and that there are no birth defects or malformations!  Yay!  Baby boy is measuring right on schedule and weighs 13 ounces!  The most amazing part was watching him open and close his hand.  His hand is probably about 1/2 inch long but we could see each joint bending.  Absolutely incredible!  I was hoping to get a glance of his feet... but he wasn't cooperating and had his legs crossed at the ankle... so both feet were kicking the same spot.  Ha ha.  No wonder it felt like such a strong kick!

I am SO behind on this blog.  The past few weeks have been packed with non-stop activity including a trip to Yosemite and a trip to Texas for my brother's wedding... not to mention all activity that's starting with our move just 17 days away.  All of that will have to wait for a later post because I need to load up on coffee (and yes, I drink coffee while pregnant) and get to a friend's house to help her clean before her move out inspection.

Whoosh Whoosh Whoosh

We had an fantastic day today!  Why?  I had a doctor's appointment and we were able to hear the baby's heartbeat on the doppler!  YAY!  We were so relieved and amazed.  More to updates to follow tomorrow... for now I'm exhausted.