40 Weeks

40 Weeks

Total Weight Loss/Gain: So I've gained a couple pounds each week the last few weeks, so my total today at my appointment is 43.  Yikes!  Looks like I've got some work to do after Abigail arrives :)  Oh well, she's worth it!

Size of Baby: Our baby is about the size of a jackfruit (pic below because I had no idea what one was...but seriously a watermelon seems bigger)! - approximately 18.9 to 20.9 inches and weighs about 6.2 to 9.2 pounds.  I think she'll be close to Logan in weight around 8 1/2 pounds.  Hopefully we'll know soon :)

Maternity Clothes: Same - Yep, but even some of those don't really fit.  I'm that huge.  Ha!
 
Sleep: What is that??

Movement: Same - mostly just shifts, turns and stretches.  She's running out of room :)  She's also very sweet to kick/punch in some unpleasant places.  Sometimes I'm afraid she's going to break my water when she does it.  Ha!

Cravings/Aversions: Same - Just food in general.  I'm just hungry and want to eat all the time.  Of course, I'm not hungry for the healthy stuff though.
 
What I Miss: Same - Sleep, having energy, and being able to be on my feet for longer periods of time so I can actually accomplish stuff.
 
Gender: Our sweet little girl - Abigail!

Mood: Excited, and super ready to meet our girl :)

Milestones: We are officially full term.  The full 40 weeks.  This is a huge answer to prayer, and honestly I didn't think we'd make it this far.  Although now that we're here, I'm super ready (and have been).

Symptoms/Medical Concerns:  Everything is mostly the same...

 

Lots of contractions that feel like they should be doing something, but obviously haven't :)

 

The heartburn is very annoying and frequent, but I'm thankful it's not more severe.

 

Restless leg is still driving me crazy, even during the day. Still having swelling in my ankles (and some in my face) too, but definitely not as bad as it could be.

 

Stretch marks are still bad and VERY itchy :(

 

Differences From Past Pregnancy: I'm much more uncomfortable at this point this time than I was with Logan.  I probably could have gone an extra week past when I delivered him before being uncomfortable.

What I Look Forward To: Crazy to say, but labor & delivery.  Mostly delivery.  However, I think labor is somewhat of a privilege.  Not everyone gets the opportunity to experience it and I think it's a beautiful thing (of course less pain would definitely be nice ;-)).

I am also, of course, very much looking forward to meeting our sweet girl, seeing what she looks like, holding her, kissing her, and all the other wonderful things that come along with being a momma.

Anything Else You'd Like to Share:  I was 2 cm dilated last week, and am still 2 cm dilated this week and still only about 50% effaced.  She doesn't seem to be making any moves towards exiting, but Logan didn't either and he just came.

This may be TMI but she stripped my membranes this appointment (and she did when I was 4 days late with Logan as well & I went into labor that afternoon).  I am hopeful that maybe it will work this time as well.  I've been having some contractions that I *think* may be a little different, but that may just be because I want them to be.  Ha!  Anyway, she said if it's going to work, it will happen within 24 hours.  I'm really hoping she takes it as a cue to exit :)

Here's a pic from yesterday in front of her crib. The lighting wasn't great so the color of her walls isn't as pretty as it is in person, but it's a peak into her room at the moment. Hopefully more room pics to come soon :)

Dear...

Dear Abigail,

I cannot believe your birthday will be here soon.  It has been such a rollercoaster since finding out you were on your way, but I would do it all over again in a heartbeat.  I cannot wait to meet you, see your sweet face, and hold you close.  You are already such a loved little girl, but I know when you arrive, the love we have for you will grow in such a way that can't be explained or measured.

Just like for your big brother, my hope for you is that God will make Himself known to you, that you will desire to know God more and that you will have a relationship with Him.  I pray that God will help me to guide you in a way that you will know the love of God and desire to do what is pleasing in His eyes.

You are already such a blessing and I am so looking forward to your arrival.  I love you more than you will ever know!

Love,


Dear Logan,

Very soon you will be a big brother!  I am so proud of the big boy you are becoming.  You are sweet, and busy, and funny, and smart, and so much more.  You care when others are sad and hurting and want them to feel better.  I know you will help take good care of your little sister.

I hope you know Mommy & Daddy love you so very much!  I know you can never truly know or understand the full love we have for you, but I hope you feel very loved.  Even though you are such a big boy now, you will always be my baby no matter how big you get.

I worry so much about the change of adding another child to our family, and how that will affect you.  I don't want you to ever feel like you are being replaced, or that you aren't enough because that is not at all the case.  Our love for you will never lessen, it will only grow.

My prayer for you and your sister is that you will love each other and become good friends.  I know there will be times when you may not like each other very much, but I hope you always love each other.

You are such a blessing and I am so thankful God allowed me to be your mother.  I love you sweet boy!!

Love,

39 Weeks

39 Weeks

Total Weight Loss/Gain: I was up 38 at my appointment last Tuesday which was shocking because I thought it'd be more.  I'm pretty sure I'm up at least 40 now though.  I will be shocked again if it's not at least that much.  My appointment is tomorrow morning, so I will know for sure then.

Size of Baby: Our baby is about the size of a watermelon (no wonder I'm so huge! ha!)! - approximately 18.9 to 20.9 inches and weighs about 6.2 to 9.2 pounds.  I'm going to throw out a guess and say she's getting close to 8 pounds.

Maternity Clothes: Yep, but even some of those don't really fit.  I'm that huge.  Ha!
 
Sleep: No changes...not much sleep happenin' here

Movement: Same - mostly just shifts, turns and stretches.  She's running out of room :)  She's also very sweet to kick/punch in some unpleasant places.  Sometimes I'm afraid she's going to break my water when she does it.  Ha!

Cravings/Aversions: Just food in general.  I'm just hungry and want to eat all the time.  Of course, I'm not hungry for the healthy stuff though
 
What I Miss: Same - Sleep, having energy, and being able to be on my feet for longer periods of time so I can actually accomplish stuff.
 
Gender: Our sweet little girl - Abigail!

Mood: Doing better, getting things checked off the list is helping tremendously :)

Milestones: 9 weeks ago, if you asked me, I would have thought she would already be here by now, but she still seems content to just hang out.  I'm so thankful though that we've made it this far.

Symptoms/Medical Concerns: I had the crazy spots this evening, and when I took my blood pressure it was high.  Thankfully it was right before Brandon was leaving work, and Logan played pretty independently so I could lay down on the cough and rest.  The spots went away, but my blood pressure was still high.  Once Brandon got home I went to lay down in our bed.  So thankful he took care of Logan for me tonight.  It's still slightly elevated, but I've been in bed ever since.  I'm also thankful I have a friend that was a L&D nurse and lets me bug her with questions about what I should do.  Hopefully things stay ok  for the rest of the night and I'll see my doctor in the morning.

 

Everything else is mostly the same - still having some pain, but it's still manageable so I'm VERY thankful for that.

 

The heartburn is still fairly constant, but I'm thankful that it's not all that severe.

 

Restless leg is driving me crazy, even during the day. Still having swelling in my ankles (and some in my face) too, but definitely not as bad as it could be.

 

Stretch marks are still bad and VERY itchy :(

 

Differences From Past Pregnancy: This whole pregnancy has just been crazy different.  So many more complications, things to worry about and more discomfort/pain than last time.

What I Look Forward To: Things are mostly to a point that I feel like we're ready enough for her to come.  I still have a long list I'd like to accomplish, but really I'm just ready to meet her, hold her and kiss her sweet face.

Anything Else You'd Like to Share:  There were no changes at my appointment last week.  I was still 1 1/2 centimeters.  This was surprising to me considering the amount and strength of contractions I had been having.  I've been having more this week as well, so I'm wondering if things will be changed at all at my appointment tomorrow.  We shall see.  This girl obviously has a plan of her own and I have no idea what it is.  Ha!

To Do List update - the new knobs for the dresser arrived, have been installed and look great!  We got the twin bed and mattress & it is all set up as well.  I am looking into fabric for curtains.  Trying to find some sort of linens for the twin bed.  I got a crib sheet in ivory to match the bedding so the crib is all set.  The rocker is in the room.  We rearranged furniture in our room to accommodate the pack n play.  My and Abigail's bags are packed.  Logan's is partially packed.  If you missed my last post about my CHAOS it has some more updates on Brandon's office and other cleaning/organizing stuff we've been up to.

Here's a pic from Saturday...can you believe it?  That is not a basketball or pillow or any other object.  That is my real actual belly right now.  Ha! (Crazy side note - that shirt isn't even a maternity shirt, yet it fits better than some of my maternity shirts.  So funny!)

Also, Logan wanted a picture too, so we took some together :)  Most of them didn't turn out great, but here's one of him "cheese"ing for the camera.  Ha!

 

CHAOS

I can't believe it's been 3 years (and 2 months - to the day) since I started this blog.  When I started it, we had no kiddos and weren't even expecting yet.  We had been trying for a little blessing for almost a year, and I decided I needed something enjoyable to do that would distract me from waiting on a sweet baby.

I also struggled with CHAOS (Can't Have Anyone Over Syndrome) because I'm just not naturally the most organized person.  It is something that takes A LOT of work for me and I easily become overwhelmed.  Well, I decided 3 year ago that I was going to do something about the CHAOS and started this blog partly to help hold me accountable.  Just a couple months later we found out we were expecting.  I had "morning" (more like all day) sickness starting at 7 weeks that caused huge set backs in the process of taking back control of my house.

Well, fast forward 3 years - I have a 2 year old and am expecting my second any day now, and the CHAOS has never had the chance to leave.  I have wanted to "nest" so badly this entire pregnancy, but was sick for a longer period of time & to a greater degree with this pregnancy than with Logan which really limited my ability to keep up with more than just my sweet, active little boy.  Once I finally felt better, it was the holidays and Logan's birthday so we were pretty busy with all that that involves.  I thought for sure once the holidays were over I would kick things into full gear and take care of a lot of much needed "to do" items before the baby arrived.  However, as many of you already know if you've been following the blog, after the holidays I started having regular contractions and had to go to the hospital 2 nights in a row to stop them.  I was then given meds to regulate them at home and put on modified bed rest (I could still do things but had to take it easier).  Once that seemed to get better I started having SEVERE sciatic pain, so much so that I used crutches and a walker around the house just to make it through the day.  Logan and I went no where because I couldn't physically tend to a VERY active 2 year old in settings outside of the home.  It was pretty awful because I felt like such a horrible mom not being able to play with him and do normal stuff with him, but physically the pain was so great, I could barely do anything.  All of this led to even more CHAOS and more craziness in my head because all I wanted to do was get things ready for our sweet girl.

Well thanks to prayer, a chiropractor, and/or the baby moving, I finally got relief a couple weeks ago from the pain.  I have been in full nesting since then.  Unfortunately, I'm still not 100% pain free, and there are things I just can't do, but I've been working hard to do what I can.

Here are some of the things I've been up to...

I finally made myself try doing one load of laundry a day because I figured I could physically manage that.  Well, because of that, I actually discovered that it works really well for me to do that, and I don't mind it as much as I thought I would.  I have had people tell me before to do that, but my thought was "I hate laundry, why would I want to do it EVERY day?"  I never gave it a chance, but because I had to this time, I found out it's really not bad and I haven't had laundry piled up since then.  Our hampers are never overflowing and I don't clean have laundry sitting in the dryer or in baskets for days.  My rule is that I don't go to bed until the laundry in the dryer is put away (unless it gets put in the dryer right before I go to bed, but then the next day I don't start the new load until the old one is put away).  This is HUGE!  There are not tons of clothes on the floor of our bedroom and closets.  You have been able to see my closet floor for weeks now.  It has been a LONG time since that was the case.  Seriously y'all, this is a BIG deal!

I have also managed to de-clutter a couple of our typical clutter areas in our main living area, but still have a few more to go on that.  The kitchen is ok, but still in need of work.  It's really hard right now for me to wash dishes because my belly prevents me from being close enough to the sink and my back starts to hurt after like 3 minutes of trying to lean over to wash stuff.  I have had to ask for a lot of help from the hubby in this area, but I really hate to do that.  It's so not his favorite thing to do, and he works, goes to school and helps with Logan, so I feel guilty asking him to do one more thing at night when I'm sure all he wants to do is have some time to himself.  However, he's a good sport and helps when I ask.  And, I will add, that he pretty much never complains.  He's pretty awesome like that.

We managed to get all of my school stuff in the attic, and the nursery room cleared out.  We painted and set up furniture and it's coming along nicely.  It's really hard though because I'm wanting to get it decorated and such, but that really shouldn't be as big of a priority as trying to finish getting the rest of the house organized before Abigail's arrival because she won't be in her room right away, but I will have to look at the mess/clutter every day if I don't get it taken care of now.  I just can't help but search online, think about things, try to plan, etc. because that is way more fun than organizing.  I'm trying to balance and do a little of both :)

The big task we are working on right now is getting the office organized and back to an office instead of a storage room.  It's funny because Logan calls it Daddy's closet, and honestly that's what it's become.  We purchased another bookshelf, and that has helped as we have (read: Brandon has) tons of books and they were just piling up everywhere.  We also reorganized his closet and got rid of some stuff, which has helped clear a lot of space in the room.  We still have boxes of papers to sort through, and some other stuff to work on, but it's definitely getting better and looking more like an office than a closet/storage room.

The more carpet & counter/table top space I see around our house the better I feel.  Progress is great, but I'm definitely getting the itch to just be DONE.  I want it all done, and I want it done now, but unfortunately, I'm not physically capable of going that fast and there's really just not enough time in the day to get it done as quickly as I'd like (longest sentence ever - ha!).

I'm thankful Abigail is taking her time to come because it's allowing us to get so much done and I know I will be able to enjoy her that much more when she arrives because I won't be having to worry/stress over all the mess in the house.  And, babies tend to attract visitors, so this way I won't be feeling the effects of CHAOS when someone wants to come by to see our sweet girl.  Although I am worried her arrival will cause a set back, but hopefully it won't be so much so that I can't get caught up once we adjust to our new normal with 2 kiddos.

I know having a clean & organized house is not what is most important in this life, but it just puts me (and Brandon too) into a better mood.  I feel like when I don't have that added stress I'm able to be a better wife and mother.  I am hoping to make this our new normal. If/when it's accomplished, I will have to take some pictures so I can share them.

38 Weeks

38 Weeks

Total Weight Loss/Gain: I was up 37 at my appointment last week, but looks like I might be up another 2 again (yikes!).  I know she's not gaining that much that fast, so looks like I'm going to have some work to do after she comes.  I have an appointment tomorrow, so I will know for sure then.

Size of Baby: Our baby is about the size of a pumpkin! - approximately 18.9 to 20.9 inches and weighs about 6.2 to 9.2 pounds.  I'm going to throw out a guess and say she's around 7.

Maternity Clothes: Yep
 
Sleep: No changes...not much sleep happenin' here

Movement: Mostly just shifts, turns and stretches.  She's running out of room :)  She's also very sweet to kick/punch in some unpleasant places.  Sometimes I'm afraid she's going to break my water when she does it.  Ha!

Cravings/Aversions: Sweets still, lots of chocolate.  Probably the reason for all the gaining I'm doing here at the end.  I have tried to limit myself, but haven't done as good of a job as I should.  I've also forgotten to mention that Coke has been a big craving.  I'm not usually a huge soda drinker, but any time there is Coke available, I seem to want it.  I have avoided buying it because I really don't want to drink that much :)
 
What I Miss: Same - Sleep, having energy, and being able to be on my feet for longer periods of time so I can actually accomplish stuff.
 
Gender: Our sweet little girl - Abigail!

Mood: Doing better, getting things checked off the list is helping tremendously :)

Milestones: I can't believe I'm 38 weeks.  So excited each week that passes!  I'm sure if I make it to 40 I'll be thinking "Ok, you can seriously come any time now" but really I'm just thankful for each day that I get to carry her.  Looking forward to seeing her sweet face though!!

HUGE ONES - The room is painted, dresser is purchased & in the room, the crib is set up (and I thought that wasn't going to happen until later this week, but Brandon surprised me and last night after I went to bed he set it up.  Isn't he the best???), clothes are washed & in dresser/closet, and baby stuff is packed for the hospital (still working on my bag, but it's partially there).

Hopefully by next week I'll have some pictures to post, but I wanted to wait until a little bit more was completed before taking/posting pictures.

Symptoms/Medical Concerns: Mostly the same - still having some pain, but it's still manageable so I'm VERY thankful for that.

 

The heartburn is still fairly constant, but I'm thankful that it's not all that severe.

 

Restless leg is driving me crazy, even during the day. Still having swelling in my ankles (and some in my face) too, but definitely not as bad as it could be.

 

I had the crazy spots again yesterday, but only for a short while.

 

Stretch marks are getting ridiculous and I'm guessing they'll only get worse from here.  It's also making my belly VERY itchy, which is so not fun :(

 

Differences From Past Pregnancy: I was barely dilated at all on the day I went into labor with Logan (at 40 weeks 5 days), and am already dilating this time.  I wonder if it will result in her being earlier than her brother.

What I Look Forward To: Finishing the nursery - I'm in major get it done mode right now.  About to order some different knobs for the dresser to make it a little girlier, looking at fabric for curtains, made a plan to try to organize/declutter Brandon's office (the last HUGE area of need - still lots of little stuff, but this is the biggest and should help with some of other little spots), looking into getting the house cleaned, and a million other things racing through my mind that I'd like to try to do before her arrival...I think I'm nesting just a tad.  Ha!  I just wish I had been able to do this sooner.

Anything Else You'd Like to Share:  I was 1 1/2 centimeters at my appointment last Tuesday, and I have another appointment tomorrow, so I'm curious again to see if anything has changed.

No picture this week, sorry...