Week 31

How far along:

31 weeks

Best moments so far:

We got to Florida yesterday, and are so looking forward to some fresh air, sunshine, and walks on the beach. Over the weekend, we had fun attending some Winter Games events at the lake, and spending time together as a family...likely for the last time before either my Sis-In-Law or myself has a new baby!

Maternity clothes:

Most. The dress I'm wearing in this photo ironically is not.

Sleep: 

Ok. I've been finishing up my most recent book, The Nightingale (excellent read by the way), and so have been staying up much later than I probably should. Luckily, I've been able to catch a few extra winks a couple days this week while the boys have been napping.

Miss Anything:

Getting around easily. Third trimester during the winter is a whole different ballgame than it is in the summer! Trying to zip up my winter coat or putting on boots are certainly not highlights of my day!

Baby Movement:

Lots. T has been amazed by the strength of the kicks he's been able to feel, and is always commenting on how active this little one is. I feel like there is not much room for baby to be moving around as much, but apparently, there is more room than I think!

Cravings and Aversions:

Nothing in particular. Looking forward to eating lots of fish in the next week while we are on vacation.

Queasy or sick:

Nope.

Symptoms: 

Same as last week. Overall fatigue...generally hits in the mid afternoon.

Looking forward to:

Enjoying a week of sunshine and weather warm enough that I don't need snow boots and winter gear on!

30 Weeks

Week 30

How far along:

30 weeks! Eeek! If I were to go full term, only 10 more weeks to go. I'll be honest...10 more weeks sounds like a lifetime away. I'm sincerely hoping for something more around eight or so weeks. I've found that being in the late stages of pregnancy during the coldest time of the year is not exactly what I would call my cup of tea. I know lots of ladies complain about being super pregnant in the middle of summer, but I'd take loose flowy dresses and less layers any day over this nonsense of trying to find my feet to get on winter boots, and zipping up a coat over the five layers I already have on. Let's not even talk about the added drama of getting the other two little people in my life ready to leave when I can barely move around, let alone 'chase' them!

Best moments so far:

We learned in our baby book that at 30 weeks, baby is most likely around 3.5 lbs, and will gain approximately 1/2 lb per week from here until the end. The boys came with to my OB checkup this week, and were able to hear baby's heartbeat (140bpm), and watch while my doctor did all of the measurements...they were both very curious, and we were all happy to learn that baby is measuring exactly right for gestational age. I will start having bi-weekly OB check-ins now rather than monthly, so it will be 'fun' fitting in another appointment to our already hectic schedule!

T & I snuck away for a night over this past weekend to take in a Minnesota Wild hockey game in Minneapolis. It was fun to have 24hrs of adult time, and nice to do some shopping at the mall without having little people to keep an eye on. I'm guessing this will be our last adults only night away before baby comes.

Maternity clothes:

All pants, and most tops. I may have to invest in a couple more basics. I purchased this plain white long sleeved top from the Ingrid & Isabel line at Target earlier on, and it shrunk immediately upon washing/drying. If you are in the market, the Pure Body tops from Gap's maternity line are far and away better - more comfortable, have more stretch, and don't shrink.

Sleep: 

I did quite a bit of tossing and turning this week during nighttime sleep. I'm always so hot if I'm being touched while I sleep, so I've pretty much kicked T to the complete other side of the bed. I've also still been super tired in the afternoons (after the caffeine from my morning cup of coffee wears off), and have strived to get the boys napping at the same time so that I can catch a few winks or at least lie down and rest while they are out. I honestly have no idea how I will function when we throw a newborn into the mix. Our boys are exhausting!

Miss Anything:

Energy, fresh air, and exercise. 

Baby Movement:

Baby has continued to stay very active, so I've been feeling lots of kicking this week. At some point, this should slow down as room runs out, and I'll need to be better about kick counts. Currently, I feel like baby has no resting times, and is constantly working on ninja kicks.

Cravings and Aversions:

Nothing in particular this week. I suppose you could say the extra iron pills I've been taking would be an aversion. They taste absolutely awful!

Queasy or sick:

Nope. I finally got over Influenza A, and have been feeling decent since late last week.

Symptoms: 

General fatigue, shortness of breath, and some Braxton Hicks contractions this week.

Looking forward to:

Winter Games this weekend at the lake. There are some fun looking kid friendly events this year (Kids Carnival at the YMCA, hot cocoa and knot tying at the Yacht Club, Chocolate Classic, etc), and we are so looking forward to having family in town. C's curiosity has been very focused on the status of our Christmas tree leading up to Winter Games weekend. One of the most loved events of the weekend is the 'Burning of the Greens'...a.k.a. burning of everyone's Christmas trees from this past holiday. The collection trucks have been out since late December, and are overflowing with good firewood!

Aside from Winter Games fun, we are heading to Florida next week, and can't wait for some sunshine, fresh air, and playing outside. Not looking forward to? Packing...The highs for the week range from 60-70 degrees, and the lows are in the 50s, so we are going to need layers instead of straight summer clothes. So much to plan out! Either way, it will be nice to be able to spend more time on the beach with the cooler weather. Our last visit was in June, and it was far too hot outside for the boys to be in the direct sun for any real length of time. The expected cooler weather will give us the opportunity to stray from the house a bit more and explore some non-water related activities.

29 Weeks

Week 29

How far along:

29 weeks!

Best moments so far:

We had a repeat ultrasound this week to check the location of my placenta, and everything checked out great, so I’m happy that is no longer weighing on my mind.

Maternity clothes:

Most. I’ve been thinking about snagging some new maternity/nursing pajamas to get me through until baby arrives and beyond, and spotted these from Kindred Bravely that are currently at the top of my list. I think they may be just the thing for my hospital bag and the hundreds of pictures I’ll probably wind up in. The ‘dress’ has great reviews, and can be worn for both sleeping and during the daytime. Bonus!

Sleep: 

Not wonderful. Our house has been sick this week - both flu AND strep - so we have all been pretty miserable as we try to get feeling better.

Miss Anything:

Good health. We have not left the house in what feels like a month (ok that’s an exaggeration...but still), and I think we would ALL benefit from some fresh air and sunshine!

Baby Movement:

Baby is still active, but has entered the weeks of pregnancy that will be more cramped, and thus not as active. At my ultrasound this past week, we determined that baby is breach (bottom down, head up), so I’m hopeful that before space is completely gone there will be some flipping going on! T says not to worry too much at this point, because chances are that baby will still flip.

Cravings and Aversions:

Chocolate. I made some banana oatmeal bars with mini chocolate chips that everyone seemed to enjoy, but ultimately, there was not enough chocolate for me, so I whipped up a batch of my favorite Hershey’s dark chocolate chip cookies.

Queasy or sick:

Oh so sick. Flu is not fun my friends. C tested positive for both flu AND strep on Saturday, and by Sunday night, both G & I had it too. Mostly, I’m just more tired than usual (is that possible?), and feel like I have a bad cold - headache, fever, body aches, stuffy nose, sore throat, etc. I did decide to take Tamiflu to help lessen the duration of this sickness, but so far, not feeling much improved.

Symptoms: 

Typical 3rd trimester symptoms of not being able to get around very well, and general exhaustion.

Looking forward to:

Feeling better! Typically, it takes about 10 days to get over the flu, so I’m praying that we are on the back end of this bug! I’ve also been feeling like I’m entering nesting mode a bit lately, and was thrilled to donate an entire carload of ‘stuff’ to Goodwill this past week. I think we are all more content with less clutter. We had so many toys the boys weren’t playing with, and clothes that had seen better days, that I think I had about six boxes worth of extra ‘stuff’ to donate. Our home has very little storage space, and the need to make room for some baby stuff gets closer every day! This weekend, T & I are headed to a Minnesota Wild hockey game in the cities, and we are both looking forward to a little adult time away before baby arrives.

Christmas 2017

Well friends, I finally uploaded my pictures from Christmas. I feel like I could just leave it at that since this is pretty much the biggest accomplishment of the new year thus far! I didn't get too involved with picture taking this year, and instead chose to focus on enjoying the moment, so you won't have 20,000 pics to view like usual.

We kicked off the festivities in my hometown the weekend leading up to Christmas (on a Monday this year, and super inconvenient for anyone who had to work Tuesday and travel for Christmas!), and the boys had an absolute blast playing with grandparents, aunts & uncles, and cousins. The highlight for C was definitely opening his new semi from Santa's visit to Grandma & Grandpa's house, while G just enjoyed the entire weekend in general. One of his favorite gifts to receive was this adorable latches barn from Melissa & Doug which he has enjoyed playing with lots and lots.

Next up was Christmas Eve at our church - G was a bit of a handful wanting to run around the area behind the pews and climb in and out of his seat repeatedly...all while using his electric candle as a nose-picking device rather than it's intended purpose for the candlelight service. Sorry to whoever was stuck using it next!

 After church, we headed to Christmas #2 with T's parents. The biggest highlight for the boys may or may not have been the 'Christmas pie' as C likes to call Gma S's French silk pie we have around holidays. These two have a serious sweet tooth! Everyone enjoyed opening gifts and playing, and C particularly enjoyed playing with his new Doctor Kit...also much coveted since Christmas by little brother G who loves to use the stethoscope to listen to daddy's heart. So sweet.

 

Christmas morning we celebrated at home, and the boys were surprised to wake up and find that Santa had in fact come to visit overnight. They were absolutely thrilled to find a new play kitchen complete with cupcakes, coffee pot, and a soup pot with cut up vegetables, and have played more hours with this than any other toy (aside from matchbox cars and tractors) in our house. Other highlights included this tent which they have loved using as a fort, and this wooden train set. Seeing the excitement of Christmas through the eyes of a child is truly something special, and we have enjoyed every moment of this year's holiday.