P3 - 34 weeks

So I peed my pants last week.  I walked in the house after work on Thursday and headed straight for the bathroom as usual because, you know, the fact that I had just peed at work 30 minutes ago means nothing.  I got about 2 steps outside of the bathroom door and felt a tiny little kick to what must have been my bladder and it just happened.  Not just a little bit like when you sneeze or cough too hard, but legit peed my pants.  I just changed my pants and went to my hair appointment thinking, I guess this is life now.

Up until 33 weeks I wasn't REALLY keeping track of how close we were, but the count down is officially on.  When I think about being 34 weeks it makes me feel like the end is just around the corner, but when I think "we have 6, possibly 7, more weeks to go" it kind of makes me cringe.  I just don't know where this girl is going to grow anymore.  Reading Jase's blog, I'm realizing this is normal for me.  My babies are heavy and the pressure is a lot to deal with on a daily basis.  I'm waddling 24/7 now and I pee at least once an hour.  More when we're home.  I'm up at least 3 times a night walking like a zombie to the bathroom...it's insane.  Getting out of the recliner or up off the floor has to be quite the site.  Even the kids at daycare are starting to make comments like, "your belly is getting REALLY big!" 

34 weeks - March 28, 2017

I think the biggest difference between this pregnancy and Jase's is the Braxton Hicks contractions.  I started feeling them a few weeks ago and they've kept increasing as the weeks go by.  I "thought" I felt them toward the end with Jase, but these are much more intense.  Seems like she's getting lower as they get more intense so that's promising, but as long as I stay hydrated and get up and move around a little they subside so seemingly normal.  Dr Dalton says they usually increase with each pregnancy so just going with the flow.

Our 34 week appointment was just a weigh in and check up on March 29th at 9am.  I am officially off on Wednesdays now so Jase goes to the appointments with me.  He keeps things interesting, constantly hogging the attention and asking Dr questions completely unrelated to the reason we're there.  His need to be the center of attention lately probably deserves it's own post, but I think it's fairly normal for this stage in the game.

Anyways, back to baby.

Heartbeat was in the 140s and I'm still measuring at 35 weeks so that was promising!  I'm guessing she just had a big growth spurt between 30 & 32 weeks and that's why I was measuring so far ahead.  Feeling a little better about her not being too far off from Jase in the weight department.  The sharp object I've been feeling in my ribs is probably her heel and her butt has moved over to the right side of my belly so that puts her positioning into perspective a little.  No doubt she's running out of room to stretch, but it's not keeping her from trying. 

Dr confirmed we'll have another sono at 36 weeks along with the Strep B swab and that was it for that appointment.  I go back Friday, April 14th for the last look at our little girl.  We're getting there!

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In other news, the first of 5 babies to be born this year arrived on March 22nd.  Delaney Mae Malone made her appearance in Florida at 7 lbs 1oz 19.5" long and is just as beautiful as her mama.

I have loved hearing the stories from Delaney's birth and reminiscing about my experiences with Jase & Korban.  The pictures Heather & Danny have posted have brought tears to my eyes more than once and made me realize how truly fleeting your baby's first few years are.

So happy for you Malone's!  Can't wait to meet sweet Delaney and celebrate your wedding this year!!!!

2017 is such a big year for my group of friends!  The domino effect has begun and Nicole, you're up next!

I also want to mention that we celebrated Kiel's 35th birthday on March 24th.  I was looking through the last 7 years of fb posts and pictures that make us look like babies and couldn't help but smile.  We may be old and married with little kids and our lives may not be very exciting, but I honestly can't imagine doing life without anyone other than him.  As much as we argue and drive each other crazy (like when I leave the back door open all night, oops), days like these always make me realize how lucky I am to have him.  He still doesn't put his dirty dishes in the dishwasher and 10 seconds after I post this he'll probably do something that will piss me off, but I'll still love him in the morning.  We have come a long way from those two unprepared kids in 2013.  I'm not sure if we've just learned more about each others wants/needs/likes/dislikes or if I'm just less emotional this time (most likely both), but we're handling this pregnancy much better.  Most days, it feels more like a team effort instead of two separate individuals trying to figure out life.  Most days ;)

And I just realized at 34 weeks with Jase, we were celebrating my 29th birthday - funny that we celebrated Kiel's birthday this round.  Maybe a daddy's girl in the making.    

On to April!

-Nicole

P3 - 30 weeks

I keep complaining about how far away May seems, but time sure is flying when I realize things like...it's been 11 weeks since my last baby update.  Yikes.

          9weeks + 3 days             12 weeks + 5 days                   13 weeks                            16 weeks     

                 19 weeks                      22 weeks                               24 weeks                      26 weeks

Week 30 -

I got so big so quickly, these pictures don't really seem to represent much, but I seem to have had another growth spurt this passed weekend.  Am I carrying high or what?!  That poor tank top lol Whoa baby!

We've painted the nursery, got the crib set up and bought a new dresser, but since the dresser arrived it's been at a standstill... 

To dos:
-Paint
-Put up crib
-Order Dresser 
-Order White blind for window
-Install blind
-Drawback for curtain
-Strip & stain shelves (mom)
-Crib skirt (mom)
-Small table for next to the glider
-Table lamp
-Bring up changing pad/covers/sheets from the basement
-Wash/organize clothes (need hangers)
-Buy hamper & other misc necessities
-Stop ordering things off Etsy

I'm trying to keep the clothes shopping to a minimum which has been pretty easy because we're fortunate enough to have a lot of hand me down options.  Lola, as we've taken to calling her, (I'm fearful she'll never be named) already has quite the wardrobe going. Shopping for bows has proven to be a little overwhelming so gonna hold off on that for awhile too, but we have quite a few hand me downs of those too!

I've started to take inventory of all the things we have from Jase and all the things we'll need to purchase.  Would it be tacky to throw myself a shower?  Kidding.  I've also started going through all the boy clothes that will never be used.  The basement is a current disaster, but I can start taking summer clothes to the consignment shop for sale as of March 1st so there is light at the end of that tunnel.  I'm ready to purge!

I was in and out of the chiropractor a few weeks ago with some pretty severe back pain, but thankfully it's under control for now. It seems the 3rd trimester drop in energy is back so I'm really missing coffee lately (I quit drinking it because I can't seem to keep myself from drinking soda so it had to be one).  By the end of the day I'm pretty stiff and my hips are pretty sore, but it's bearable.  I've definitely gained weight all over with this pregnancy more so than with Jase.  I can feel the heaviness of my body as I grow each week and it's not just the baby.  My legs and arms are larger and I can see a distinct difference in my face.  It's only temporary....it's only temporary....it's only temporary.

We had our 30 week appointment yesterday, February 28th and it was very ummmm eye opening.

First the scale.  For whatever reason, I didn't get weighed at my last appointment so when 184 popped up on the scale I'm sure my face showed my surprise.  I know I just said I can tell I've gained a lot of weight, but I was not expecting to be up 34 lbs with 10 weeks left to go.  Only 6 more lbs to surpass my total weight gain of 40lbs with Jase.  Not like it's going to stop me from eating whatever I want so we'll just move on.

Dr. Dalton wanted to go over everything at this appointment - birth plan, after birth plan, how I'm handling baby #2 emotionally, if I feel safe at home (watch your step Kiel), placenta placement and any/all questions/concerns I'm having.  She got her questions out of the way fairly quickly...vaginal birth with epidural, birth control w/follow up vasectomy for Kiel in a year or so delivering at BroMenn and baby well checks with our family dr in Chenoa after she is checked out by the on call Neonatal Physician when we deliver.  I learned that episiotomies are a thing of the past and the likelihood of me tearing where I had one with Jase is higher because the skin is weaker.  Fun!  She won't let me go passed 41 weeks which already seems too long, but reassuring there is light at the end of the tunnel no matter how I reach it.  We won't be getting any fun 3 or 4D ultra sounds this time around since there do not appear to be any kidney issues and baby is otherwise healthy...all the praise hands!  But a little disappointing not to have something to compare to her brother.  The only thing I forgot to ask about is if she has plans to be gone around our due date.  The nurse I asked didn't believe so, but I've made a note to ask next time.  I also got my TDAP shot which was nothing, but is now really sore today...cry me a river I know.  And on to the ultra sound...

Baby girl was awake and wanted us to know it.  Every time Dr. Dalton pushed the wand on my stomach, she would respond with a punch or kick which made us all giggle.  Right away, Dr. Dalton confirmed the placenta has grown away from my cervix and baby is head down - outstanding news!  She measured her head, stomach and femur bones and each time exclaimed "Oh she's tall!" or "She's a big girl!"  She asked me to remind her how big Jase was and when I said 9lbs she responded, "hmmmm, she might be bigger than brother."  Thankfully she isn't concerned by this since I've already naturally birthed a 9lb baby, but my lady parts cringed at a lot of this information.  All the measurements came up between 90 & 93.5% for size and the final weight estimate is 4.2 lbs.  As baby should gain an additional .5 lbs per week from here on out, we are in fact on track for another 9lb baby.  And in case you're wondering like I was, Jase was measuring at 2lbs 12oz at his 28 week appointment so she's got a little over 2lbs on him with a 2 week difference.  Gah.

There is no doubt she's in there growing away as I feel her 24/7 on every single inch of my stomach.  Sometimes it feels like she's in between my pelvic bones and sometimes I feel like she's going to jump out of the top of my stomach.  When I lay on my side at night, she will start pushing or rubbing on the side I'm laying on and it tickles.  She has found my bladder just as her brother did around this point and constantly has me running to the bathroom.  I can tell my skin is stretching thinner and recently I was able to feel what I think was probably her butt next to my belly button when I pushed down.  Kiel has seen movement, but hasn't felt her.  Jase has felt her kick a few times.  He's not usually patient enough to sit and wait and she usually stops moving when I call them over so still not something that happens often for them, but I know she is definitely on the move.

I haven't even picked up my before baby book that I was attached to and constantly quoting when pregnant with Jase so no surprise I haven't been checking baby center for growth info, but here's the 30 week post from Jase that should have all that in there.  So so crazy how much has changed since that post.

Our doctor appointments are now every 2 weeks and we will have one more ultra sound to check growth for our little overachiever. 

10 more weeks! 

-Nicole