Week 30

Along: 30 weeks

Size of baby: The baby 15.7 inches long now and weighs almost 3 pounds. He/she is the size of a large cabbage. His/her eyesight continues to develop, and now that the little peanut can regulate his/her own body temperature.

Total Weight Gain/Loss: 22 pounds as of Tuesday.

Maternity Clothes:  I do a mixture. There are more and more things that do not fit anymore. I also get queasy with shirts or pants that put a lot of pressure on the baby. This belly is a growing!

Gender: Surprise! The heart rate was 145 on Tuesday. The doctor commented how I am carrying the little one in my hips. She said that this was really normal with the second baby. It makes me think that it is a girl though. I carried Noah like a basketball!

Movement: Yes. I love it despite the pain that I feel in my rib cage sometimes. In my opinion, there is nothing better than a sweet, dancing baby in a mama's belly!

Sleep: I have taken some Benadryl this week to help in this area. Insomnia is the worst during busy season, so it has helped insured at least 7 hours of solid sleep. Last night, I was up for three hours in the middle of the night just thinking. I have no idea why. I try to use the time to pray or plan out the next day. I do sometimes have to hit up a little extra caffeine midday with nights like last night. 

What I miss: I miss being able to bend down with ease. It's hard to pick things up off the ground. I also miss being able to see the ground. I trip a lot!

Cravings: Cottage cheese, salad, chicken, peanut butter, chocolate, and cheese.

Symptoms: Headaches, pressure, and back aches. I also am always thirsty!

Best Moment This Week:  Matt finished up our desk in the office. It is amazing! He worked so hard on it, and it is going to be the perfect set up for me while I work at home. I never knew how handy Matt was until we moved into this house. I married a home improvement stud- be jealous!

Amazing desk I'm working at as I type this!

My super cute hubby with his new "cohort"- I found out this is the proper term for smarty pants PhD students in the same class. Matt is already doing so well! I am one proud wife.

22 months

How can it be that you are two months away from turning two? This year has flown by! I am just amazed by how much you have developed since your first birthday. You are no longer a baby- 100% boy and 100% fun (ok maybe 99% fun- 1% temper tantrums).

Let's talk favorites. Noah, you love to jump. We call you "buzzbean" because 1) your hair cut 2) you are always jumping like a bean. There have been some bonked heads and stubbed toes, but it doesn't stop you. You jump all day long. You love to snuggle with your mommy. You love to sit in my lap at night for hours. The little peanut kicks you! It's so awesome. I can already feel (literally) the sibling rivalry. At night for the past week, you have been asking for me to rock you. We have never really done much rocking to sleep because you always had your pacifier that self soothed you. With losing the pacifier and your attachment phase to mommy, I think you have realized you liked to be rocked to sleep and spending that special time with me. Hey, I'm not complaining. I love when you need me.

 You love to play Kaleb- y'all are two peas in a pod. You even sound alike. It's crazy how much y'all have learned from each other. You are very endearing towards him- patting his head, giving him hugs and kisses, feeding him, pushing him on the trike, and running races. You also like to tell him no if he has your toy. You both are working on learning to share.

Your favorite movie this month is RIO. We watch it all the time. You can sing the songs and try to "quote" it. It's the cutest thing ever- even though I think your daddy and I would both say that we are very tired of the movie.  You can make a basket in the hoop your Nana got you this summer. You even will say "Daddy, go shoot". You love sports already. Your daddy and I will play horse on the hoop at night- you always want to be the ball boy! It's awesome! You also have great foot-eye coordination. When you turn three, we will put you in soccer little dood. I know it will wear you out!

Words-there are too many new ones to count. Some of my favorites this month- toot (in context), diaper, popcorn, excuse me, yeehaw, hand, toe, towel, fish, cup, fork, door, and so many more. You can identify the colors orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple. As for counting, you can count up to five.

You still love cars and airplanes. Your favorite animal is a monkey. You are a great helper. You love to put dishes away, help with the laundry, and Clorox wipe the kitchen. Lately, I have noticed that you mimic everything your daddy does. If he sits somewhere, you have to sit next to him. You want to work with his tools and help him carry out the trash. You think your daddy is the best thing ever.

You are eating a ton right now. The funniest thing is you are quite the little dipper. You love to dip things in all sauces. Right now, your favorite is ranch. You will go the refrigerator and pull it out before dinner. As for types of food, your favorites this month are sweet potatoes, crackers, gold fish, grapes, blueberries, banana bread, carrots, apples, and pasta.

You have 14 teeth and wear 2T clothes. You sleep through the night at least 12 hours and nap from about 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. every day.Little dood, your daddy and I love you very much! We can't wait to see what's in store for next month. 

30 week pregnancy post to come tomorrow!

Summer Swimming Time and New Do

We have been enjoying the August heat in our make shift pool this past weekend. Noah loves it! It totally wears him out.

P.S.- Dood got a BUZZ cut! Notice the difference between Saturday and Sunday! 

Noah is definitely in his birthday suit with these last two pictures- hence why the pictures are waist up. He was covered in his hair so we decided this was the best way to hose him off after the big hair cut. He looks like a BOY! Where has my baby gone?

Week 29

Along: 29 weeks

Size of baby: The baby is the size of a butternut squash. This week marks an important milestone in the baby's brain development: The brain has matured to the point where it can help regulate body temperature. She/he also continues to develop nerve cells in the brain.

Total Weight Gain/Loss: 18 pounds as of last week. Let's say 19 this week. According to this app I have, I should gain about a pound a week from here on out. This will put me right at where I was with Noah, so I am good with it. Really, I will be fine with whatever as long as my cute #2 little baby comes out healthy.

Maternity Clothes:  I do a mixture. I just got this cute new top pictured above at Target. I'm kind of obsessed, and I think I will probably wear it at least once every couple days. It is so comfortable!!

Gender: Surprise! We cannot decide on names- boy or girl. Here is how a conversation went last night:

Me: I'll make your lunch tomorrow if you let me pick for the name of the Peanut.

Matt: Who do you think I am- Esau?

Movement: The peanut continues to dance all day long. I absolutely love it.

Sleep: I wake up a lot in the middle of the night, but I still stay in bed from 7-10 hours. The more I exercise the better I sleep.

What I miss: I miss going to the bathroom only a couple times a day rather than once every hour or so.

Cravings: Ice water, Gatorade, cottage cheese, cheese in general, fruit, salad, toasted sandwiches, peanut butter and sweets.

Symptoms: Round ligament pain, pressure, back aches, swollen digits, and insomnia.

Best Moment This Week:  My parents came into town this past weekend along with my brother. I did a post on it yesterday, so I won't' repeat myself. Summary of my post from yesterday: it was so nice to see them and my brother. My dad has all these great ideas for our yard he wants to start on when they come visit the new baby for a couple days. My mom spoiled us with some treats and Daniel entertained the dood. Matt and I are thankful that when God called us to move cities- it was still in the same state. I am looking forward to their next visit which will be Noah's birthday party. I think I am going to plan it at the beginning of October in case the peanut decides to make an early entrance. We are going to do airplane themed since Noah is obsessed with airplanes. That is all for now!

Peace, Love, and Happy Third Trimester to Me!

My sweet, sweet boy being silly, silly, silly!

Last night, as I was doing work on the couch and he was snuggling next to me- Noah pushed the computer aside and sat himself right on my lap. I cherish moments like these- I love that he still needs his mama. 

Weekend Visitors

My parents and brother came to Dallas this weekend to visit us. Daniel had not seen our new house and my parents hadn't seen all the work Matt has put into updating it.  Noah was in heaven- he could not get enough attention. He pulled every trick out of the bag- keeping us all laughing. The gang arrived Saturday afternoon and we tried out a new lunch place called "The Porch". We all loved the food and atmosphere. I had a chicken avocado sandwich and a side of the best macaroni and cheese.  I think we would definitely go back. When my parents come, we have been trying a new restaurant off of the Dallas top 100 list. It has been great so far. We have only tried two restaurants, but I figure since we will be here the next 5 years (at least) - it will be a fun task to accomplish. 

Lunch at the Porch

Afterwards, we headed home to let Noah take a nap. Turns out- homeboy lost his last pacifier, so as of Saturday- we are PACIFIER FREE. I am kind of sad about it. I know that's pathetic to admit, but I wanted to be the one who decided when to stop it. Honestly though, it was time. He has been sleeping fine without it, and it is probably best for his teeth and speech sake.  I think the pacifier was definitely a comfort thing for Noah, but he still sleeps with his bunny and blanket, so he doesn't seem too traumatized at all. After his nap (which didn't happen because he wanted to come home and play with the new toys his Grandma and Ops brought him), we headed over to their hotel for a nice long swim. Noah was a fish in the water. He really had no fear. My dad was trying to teach him how to blow bubbles and breathe. I think the more we get out to the pool and do it- the better he will become. Another added benefit- it exhausts him. We came back Sunday morning again for another swim and he took a 4.5 hour nap on Sunday afternoon. SUCCESS! I had so much time to be productive around the house- it was awesome.

Swimming with his uncle

Needless to say, we had a great time seeing my family. Daniel is now off to Washington D.C. to get his LLM for tax law, Matt has started school, I'm back to the old grind of tax work, and my parents are back in Austin doing what they do best. Enjoy the pictures!

Breakfast Buffet at the Hotel

Noah destroyed the food- homeboy is eating us out of the house.

He loved his uncle's "cool" glasses!

 Happy Tuesday! 

Mommy and Baby Update

Whew! Remind me never to book back to back appointments- EVER. Last Thursday was one of the craziest days of my life. Matt had to go up to campus, so I was going to drop Noah off at Ashley's house. Her mom was going to watch Noah and Kaleb while we went to our doctor's appointments. With poor time management and getting distracted with August 15th tax work in the morning, I did not allow enough time for me to drop Noah off and head to the doctor's office. My decision- oh- I'll just take Noah with me! YIKES!!!!! I arrived at the sonogram place and they were running an hour behind schedule- my thoughts- what will I do with a crazy toddler for an extra hour in the doctor's office? Ya-good question right? I had to fill out 7 pieces of paper and he wanted to help me "tattoo" the pages I was filling out. He loves to draw right now and didn't understand why I couldn't/wouldn't share. Luckily after he understood there would be no assisting mommy in the paperwork, he moved on and was distracted with a pair of sunglasses, my phone, and a nutrigrain bar.

Did I mention that I forgot to really look at myself in the mirror before I left? I had huge raccoon eyes from my mascara. I was a walking mess. I can't wear my wedding ring right now, so I definitely looked like that mom who had gotten knocked up twice, hadn't slept in a month, and couldn't control her son. 

After the nurse realized how far behind they were running, she sent me to go take my glucose test. I headed down there with Noah and had to fill out another pile of work papers. The lab people handed me the juice, and Noah kept asking me for some. Once again, he didn't understand why mommy wouldn't share her "delicious" (NOT) fruit punch drink that she had to chug in under 5 minutes.

I finished the juice and went back to get my sonogram. Noah came in there with me and was so interested in the machine. I had to do everything I could to keep him from pushing the buttons while we waited for the sonogram tech. At this point, we were both exhausted and I was just praying it would go quickly. The tech came in and checked everything out- baby looks great. Noah kept saying BABY BABY BABY. It was so precious- I did enjoy that. I did not enjoy that he was sitting on the sonogram table with me holding on for dear life because he hates heights. I had some good grip marks on my arm afterwards to prove his tight and painful hold on me.

Let's get to the good news- On Thursday, the peanut weighed around 2 pounds 9 ounces and very healthy. The heartbeat was right at 136. He/she was still head up and the tech commented that the profile of this little one looks very similar to Noah's. I kind of suspect this will always be the case. If Matt and I were to have 5 kids, I think they would all look alike. I guess we won't really know until November, but I just feel like Matt's genes dominate mine, so they all will be his little twinkies. Ashley was able to come save me the last 20 minutes of my sonogram and read Noah a book. The doctor came in and did the final little look over. I always have to remind them that the gender is a secret. I got so nervous that the doctor and tech would just start talking about it. Ashley and I both turned away as he checked the gender parts. I was not tempted to look at all!

After the sonogram, Ashley took Noah back to her house and I had my blood drawn. The lady was awesome- first try she was able to get all that she needed. (This is rare for me- usually I'm poked multiple times by multiple nurses- I have small, hidden veins). After that, I had my next appointment with my normal OBGYN. It also went great. I was weighed (gained a total of 18) and all my blood work was normal. I go back every two weeks now! Although what should have been a 2 hour appointment turned into a 5 hour appoint, I am thankful for good reports and glad to say I survived. I kept telling myself if I can make it through this, surely I can handle two kids? HAHAHA! I know I'll eat my words later.

 I leave you with a picture of the dood and his new favorite hat! 

Week 28

There that belly grows!

Along: 28 weeks

Size of baby: The baby is the size of an eggplant- weighs 2 1/4 pounds and measures 14.8 inches from the top of her/his head to her/his heels. The peanut can blink his/her eyes, which now sport lashes. With the baby's eyesight developing, the baby may be able to see the light that filters in through my womb- SO COOL. The peanut is also developing billions of neurons in her/his brain and adding more body fat in preparation for life in the outside world.

Total Weight Gain/Loss: We will know Thursday.

Maternity Clothes:  I do a mixture of maternity and non-maternity. I never got around to shopping for more maternity clothes a couple weeks ago. I'm at the point where I'm tempted to see how creative I can get with the things I already own.

Gender: Surprise!

Movement: This is my favorite part about being pregnant. This little peanut is wild, and I love feeling him/her move.

Sleep: Not great- I came down with a cold this past weekend, so the cold just added to the lack of it. I honestly have just accepted it- I'm not a good sleeper while I'm pregnant. I try to be in bed at least 8 hours, so that even if the sleep isn't deep, I'm at least resting.

What I miss: I really can't think of anything!

Cravings: Ice water, peaches, peanut butter, ice cream, cottage cheese, bananas, cheese, coffee and chocolate.

Symptoms: Round ligament pain, pressure, back pain, swollen digits, irritability, and exhaustion.

Best Moment This Week:  My best friend since the fifth grade came up on Saturday and spent the weekend with us. We didn't do anything too crazy, but it was so nice to hang out and chat. Noah loved having a visitor- he showed off to Jenna the whole time. Noah was so excited when he woke up on Sunday, and he realized she was still at our house. Jenna taught him thumbs up and how to catch a ball with two hands. Noah hasn't perfected either of the skills- but he is getting pretty close. Matt, Noah, and I took her to White Rock Lake on Sunday morning and did a little jog. It is so beautiful around there. Jenna is training for a half Ironman in January. We are so excited to root her and Catherine on in spirit; I can't wait to join them in a couple years and do one myself. I didn’t take any pictures. I know- I'm horrible. My parents are coming up on Saturday- I will make sure to take some pictures! This blog is getting BORING!

Lets Talk About Gender

New Sibling? Why yes please! 

1)    \How do you carry your baby?

Low

Result: BOY

2)    What is the exact fetal heart rate of your baby in one full minute?

At 24 weeks, it was 146. At 18 weeks, it was 134.

Result: UNDECIDED

3)     What foods do you crave to eat?

Sweet

Result: GIRL

4)     How often do you suffer from morning sickness?

Often

Result: GIRL

5)     What does your belly look like?

Watermelon

Result: GIRL

6)     Where can you locate your extra weight?

Around waist and hips area

Result: GIRL

7)    Do you have acne on your face?

YES

Result: GIRL

8)    How would you describe your feet

Same as usual

Result: GIRL

9)    How does your hair on your legs grow?

Slower than usual

Result: GIRL

10)  Chinese Gender Predicator?

Result: BOY

11)  Sibling hairline test? Straight line or point?

Point

Result: Point means opposite of what you have now- so GIRL!

I decided as I am approaching my third trimester that I would do this little quiz and document my results for the blog. As you can see, it really is shaping up that #2 should be a girl according to all of these old wives tales.

When people ask us our thoughts, we really have no idea. There is so much of this pregnancy that is similar to Noah's, and then I feel like there is so much that is different. This pregnancy has flown by. Because I haven't had the poison ivy this time, this pregnancy has been a breeze. Am I uncomfortable? Yes. It's hard to sit for long periods of time and I don't sleep much, but I feel so much joy. I know this little one is God's gift to us. God has been so sovereign throughout our marriage; I can't wait to see what He has in store for the next chapter as a family of four.

Psal 127:3 "Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb is a reward."

Forever my muscle man. #2 will have a lot to learn from the little dood.

Week 27

Along: 27 weeks

Size of baby: The baby is the size of a head of cauliflower. The peanut weighs almost 2 pounds and is about 14 1/2 inches long with legs extended. He/she's sleeping and waking at regular intervals, opening and closing her/his eyes, and perhaps even sucking her/his fingers. With more brain tissue developing, the peanut's brain is very active now.

Total Weight Gain/Loss: My guess would be 18-22 pounds. I go next Thursday for an appointment. We will do the weigh in then!

Maternity Clothes:  I wear a mixture of both.

Gender: Surprise! I think it is a girl and Matt thinks it is a boy. If Noah had his choice, it would be Mickey Mouse. (He is obsessed with him right now).

Movement: Very active! My stomach does the roll and I love it. It is such a sweet, special time between me and the peanut. I really do cherish it.

Sleep: I have taken a Tylenol pm the past two nights, and that has really helped. With the aches and pains of a baby growing, my body is sore. I try not to take much medicine while I'm pregnant, so I don't plan on making it a habit- but I will admit- that deep REM sleep has been nice.

What I miss: Nothing right now- I am trying to enjoy the end of the second trimester. I know as I get closer to my due date, the more miserable I will become.

Cravings: Cold drinks and fruit is all I can think of right now.

Symptoms: Swollen digits, back aches, mood swings (I am not a crier, but right now- I cry real easy), and pea size bladder.

Exercise: I tried out a swim class this week and loved it. I am going to try to make a habit of going once a week- it's a 5:30 am class- EARLY EARLY. I grew up swimming competitively, so it was humbling to be in the slow lane way behind the majority of the group. Also, I couldn't tell if people knew I was pregnant or if they just thought I was tubby- very humbling. I forgot to mention, the group I was swimming with was all ironman competitors and had fancy gear- flippers, boogies, kickboards, etc. All I had was a swim cap and some really cool holographic shark lens goggles Matt bought in college from Wal-Mart.  Once again, very humbling. I am being dramatic really. It was such a blessing to get out there and have the opportunity to swim with such great athletes. I have missed my CG boot camp in Austin and having a variety in my workout. It felt great to get in the water and I'm looking forward to doing in next week.

Best Moment This Week:  We had our second supper club meeting on Saturday with our Dallas buddies. This time we hosted the group and it was so much fun. In Austin, our apartment was always so small and cramped. Not anymore- we actually had room to socialize! I have decided that it really is so wonderful to have an excuse to get together once a month with a sweet group of people who love Jesus. I didn't take any pictures- womp womp.

Happy Wednesday! Here are some pics taken while we did the weekly bump shot.

The two most important men in my life.

Hilarious outtake- all I can think of is that SNL skit with Will Ferrell- who is that in my tepee ?!?!

Crackers.