25

25 weeks = done.
less than 15 to go.
(yes, i did just double check my math. turns out pregnancy brain IS real)

everyone asks me how im feeling. im thinking im either lucky or a change is coming. im hoping for the first one. ive been feeling fine. heartburn here or there. sore feet after working 3 days in a row. its getting a bit more difficult to get into bed, but still manageable. (im trying to convince the hubs to lower it some how but thats not working). and im starting to feel some braxton hicks contractions. just one a day, maybe. but its odd. very odd.

we are now able to see the movements, just short little movements on my belly, but its still really cool. and the hubs can now feel the difference between light and stronger movements. im still craving root beer floats and birthday cake oreos. and orange juice i guess. still a no thank you to spaghetti though.

our next doctors appointment will be the glucose screening test. to see if i have gestational diabetes. im hoping my life of sugar consumption for these past 26 years was really just preparing my body to pass this test. at least thats what i keep telling myself :)

life lately

Here are some of the random things we have been up to lately: 

Got a glider chair for the nursery. I didn’t even have to ask the hubs to put it together; he just did it on his own. Also, its super comfy, I’ve sat in it quite a bit already talking to the baby or just relaxing. I’m glad we got this one and didn’t get a wooden rocker like I was thinking. 

Hanging out with friends. Well this one is me. Some friends came over the other night to just have a little girls night and catch up. It was a lot of fun to see these girls again and just chat about anything and everything. But have no fear the hubs will soon be hanging out with his friends for a man baby shower. Aka just another excuse to have a few brew-skies. 

Changed out the lighting in nursery. Turns out it was a big longer of a project than the hubs anticipated due to some screw placement or something, but we really like it. 

Landscaping. Well we haven’t been doing this, the hubs has. He has been taking out the rock we don’t want, planning to create new pathways/walkways and hiding one of our tree stumps. Here’s to hoping some warmer weather is on its way. He is also waiting to hear from a grant he applied for to put in some rain gardens too. 

Baby classes. This past weekend we were educated on all things labor & delivery, breastfeeding and baby care. Made me realize we have a lot to think about, do we want music in the labor & delivery room? Epidural? What to wear? How long should the hubs take off of work? How to know what to dress the baby in for summer or winter? And then of course other random things that I know don’t need to be decided right now but I am still thinking about…Santa. Discipline. Pop. Sugar. Having to have the birds and the bees talk.

pregnancy surprises

Typically when people talk to me about being pregnant they ask the same questions & say the same things. 

When are you due? How far along are you? You are going to be SOOO miserable this summer!!! What are you having?  Oh you aren’t finding out the sex? That’s so exciting (insert personal story here)  Oh you aren’t finding out the sex? That’s gotta be so hard! How can you do that?

You get the jist. Now don’t get me wrong, I love talking anything and everything baby. But then there are those who ask some different questions. The ones that catch me off guard and really make me think. 

What are things that have surprised you about being pregnant? Wowza.

I think its actually experiencing it. (It sounds lame and general but let me explain) take the first trimester. You hear that during the first trimester you are very tired. But there is no way to describe and really understand how tired that actually is until you ACTUALLY ARE that tired.  I also now know what heartburn feels like, how it feels to get out breath after climbing a flight of stairs or just getting into bed. (and YES, I DO know it is only going to get worse as we finish up these last few months) 

Another thing that surprised me is when I was finally able to feel the baby kick. Yes, it makes it a lot more real. But the surprising part was where I was feeling it. I feel as if all the movies you see and stories you see you assume the baby always kicks up in the center of your belly by your belly button. But not true. It’s a lot lower, closer to the pelvis. 

Names. I guess I was naive about this one. I honestly figured it would be pretty easy. But it’s a bit more difficult and time consuming that I originally had thought. It isn’t hard work by any means, but challenging. And not even first names. It’s the middle names that get you. And then you have the initials. Making sure it doesn’t spell out something inappropriate or in my case making sure it doesn’t spell out some abbreviation for a medical procedure, cuz I’m cool like that. 

And no, these aren’t the only things and I still have 3+ months to go so the list will continue to grow, but I don’t want to end up writing a book. Or putting all you readers to sleep.But i am enjoying the experience...regardless of how much i complain. i mean when else can you have an all access pass to eat as many birthday cake oreos and root beer floats?!?!  :)

babymoon to duluth

last weekend the hubs and i traveled to duluth for a little babymoon. its one of the free remaining weekends before the baby comes. so off we went. 

saturday morning we started the day early. someone wouldnt let me sleep in; despite the reminders of all the advice i'd been hearing "sleep now while you can, you wont get much in the third trimester" or "sleep now because you wont get much when the baby is here" --- but in his defense he did let me "sleep in" (until like 8:30) because he was up at 6:30 taking full advantage of the continental breakfast and a foggy walk by the lake. but still. 8:30 isnt really considered sleeping in in my book at least.

we first checked out the great lakes aquarium. there was a "how well do you know lake superior" game with a bunch of facts, so i tested the hubs. turns out he got like 7 of 8 questions right. i was pretty surprised. until he told me later on that day that he had read most of the facts on the little signs posted along the lake where he took his early morning stroll. 


i think our favorite part was watching some divers feed the fish. who knew a sturgeons mouth was on the underside and looks like a little pucker thing? not i. but now we have proof. 

and we couldnt pass up this photo op. funny story, clearly the hubs took these pictures. and it took him a week (when he was uploading these pictures) to realize what was really happening in the next picture. he thought i was standing up. but CLEARLY baby didnt want to be left out.

we ate at a little mexican place for lunch and had some of the best salsa i have ever had. baby and i definitely filled up on chips and salsa. best 99 cents ive spent in a long time. we spent the rest of the afternoon walking and checking out some shops and just relaxing. turns out it was a bit chillier than we had anticipated up there and only brought one coat so we were pretty cold. we did manage to stay outside long enough to watch a ship come too. but it was freezing!

saturday night we went to a play. and it was interesting. when i hear play i immediately think big production, lots of cast etc. well this was more community theater, small cast (8 i think) and could seat about 100-150 people maybe? but it was a good play, with good acting and we enjoyed it. 


sunday morning we took a walk by the lake as well and did some driving around duluth and even ventured into superior wi. just to say we did. lol. and then headed back home. it was definitely a weekend that flew by, but it was relaxing. it was nice not to check email or facebook or feel like "i should be cleaning this...or doing this..." like we so often do at home. good quality time together before baby. and we can't complain about that.

23

the end of 23 weeks today. crazy! not a lot has changed, just a growing belly i guess. we have been doing some work on the nursery which has been fun. baby is definitely growing and i can tell he or she is getting stronger...his or her movements are becoming stronger and a bit more frequent. other people are able to feel some of the movements too which is exciting. 

any guesses on who made this week's whiteboard? since its a bit hard to read, heres a close up:

and thats all that needs to be said about that.

i had another appointment this week and had our follow up ultrasound since this little one was being stubborn at the first ultrasound. thankfully baby cooperated this time and they got some good pictures of the face, especially the lip. heart rate was about 147. 

and we found out baby is very flexible! baby had his or her legs up close to his or her body, with the knees practically touching his or her face, with his or her arms grabbing its legs. it was quite comical. and then at one point baby had his or her feet flexed up like he or she was getting ready to give me a little kick.