Preschooler in the hiz-ouse!

Yay for preschool!

   Wow the time has come where I'm sending my first born off to school! I remember the first 3 days of his life vividly as if they occurred yesterday and now he's 3 years old and I have another little one on the way and due in just a few short weeks. **mind=boggled**.   

   Well believe it or not, I didn't shed a tear. I was and am, super excited for him to experience this next chapter in his life. I suppose if he was extremely shy and/or was scared to leave my side I might have handled things differently but if you know anything about Eli, being shy is not something he knows! He didn't hesitate one bit to jump right into friend making and toy exploring. He's nosey (like his momma) and an extrovert (like his daddy) so I feel other kiddos may be more overwhelmed with him than him with them. I realize kids can be down right cruel and that I can't control other parent's brats offspring so as a mother I'm focusing on teaching/guiding my child to be a leader, not a follower. I can't put him in a bubble but I can help build his confidence. I can't stop bullies but I can encourage my kid to stand up for other people. I have to just stay focused on the things I can do and let God handle the rest. Sigh. Easier said than done I know.

  

Stealing kisses while he's too young to protest.

  I almost didn't sign him up for preschool this fall because I was too lazy to fill out the stack of paperwork almost missed the deadline and luckily got my butt in gear and snagged the last slot for his age group. I heavily debated even doing it because of this new baby on its way but then got to thinking how nice it would be to have a nice 2 hour chunk of time in the mornings, 3 days a week to just have with Andrew or to squeeze in a nap while Eli is entertained and surrounded by friends...AND he'd come home for his OWN 2 hour nap after that for a total of 4hrs of "me time"! I started to get lightheaded from all the giddiness inside me! "Me time" again? I seriously heard angels singing!

  Then the reality sank in and my bubble of bliss deflated. Yes I'd get "me time" again, and yes Eli would be in a super awesome learning environment right down the street, BUT now he'll be among the other kids bringing home every germ known to man and I'd have a vulnerable newborn at home. Ugh. Right decision, or was I being selfish??? I sure hope Breastfeeding and the school's huge emphasize on hand washing will save us. So if you're the praying kind, put us on your list please and thank you.

He'll alway be my baby

     After his first day, I of course grilled him for details and laughed when he started with "well my ladies took my handprint and we made a craft project!" Ha ha ha ha. His "ladies" would be his 2 teachers. He seems to really like them and school in general so far after only 2 days of attendance so I'm excited.

  Anywho, did you notice his snazzy new backpack?? I'm super proud of this creation. I absolutely love his Planes movie backpack that we use for everything but when I got his supplies list required for school I realized it wouldn't fit a binder (come to find out, the binder was only needed the first day and his Planes one would have sufficed but I had already made this new one.) I followed a few different tutorials to get the look I wanted. This was the tutorial that got me started, but I didn't like the strap placement in the middle of the back of the bag so I changed that up and then just used my previous bag making experience to finish it. This bag tutorial was another excellent resource if you're interested in making one for the little person in your life.

Here are some more detailed pics:

I added a simple velcro closure to the front pocket

   Best part is it's fully lined! I loathe raw edges. For the lining you just repeat the same construction steps as the outside of the bag but instead of doing the zipper part again, you just fold over those edges and either sew over the outside zipper stitches or hand sew in place. I chose to hand sew it so that it would look more finished. I lucked out having all the supplies on hand including the little plastic adjustable strap pieces! (shhhh, don't tell my hubby but he had a bag that they were a part of that I swear were on there just for decorative purposes so I seam-ripped those puppies off and stole them. You'd never notice they were gone so don't tell him!) Thrifty thrifty sir.

    I get a stupid grin on my face every time I see him wearing it. I just love that kid. Here's to a successful first year of school bud! Mmmmmuah!

-Linds

My 30 week pregnancy check-in

  

    Is it just me or is this pregnancy going by super fast?? I realize January, (when I conceived) seems like forever ago but sheesh, I'm already 30 weeks! I'm still feeling good but bending over to pick something up is the pits, and I really hate only being able to sleep on my right and left side. I can't wait to flip over to my stomach after the baby gets here. Oh, and I'm definitely waddling full time now, ha ha.

  I just had my third ultrasound this past Friday because I'm rotating practioners so I can meet them all before I deliver (since God knows I'll deliver probably on a weekend, or at the very least during "off" hours and get the doc on call instead of my usual one) and this last doc had a hard time feeling the top of my fundus and claimed I was only measuring 24 wks (this was at my 27 week, almost 28 week appointment) and thought an ultrasound was needed "just to make sure he's growing ok." Apparently this wiggle worm was moving like crazy 24/7 but not growing for the past month. I don't buy it. Honestly, I wasn't worried because he's been super low from the get-go and I could already tell he was head down based on the location of the hiccups he has often and I also get him kicking off my right hip bone regularly so I was sure he was just wrapped more sideways, then up. Plus my usual doc has always measured me right on target. Sigh. Anyways I didn't mind the extra ultrasound since they did one each trimester for Eli since I was "higher risk" being hypothyroid.

  Well as the ultrasound confirmed, he IS head down, and he does kind of wrap around with butt to my left and feet off to my right lower abdomen and incidentally is measuring a week larger then expected at 30 weeks and 3 days. He needs to steady his pace though because I'm shooting for a 7 ½ pounder ;)

She got a big 'ol preggo belly!

I made this yoga band style skirt a year or 2 ago. Love how versatile it is that I can even wear it pregnant

Back to the pregnancy questionnaire I did at 20 weeks. Lets see how much things have changed shall we:

How far along: 30 weeks!

Total weight gain: I'm up 22lbs (Yowza! That was pretty easy to do. Dang appetite)

Maternity clothes: Pickins's are getting slim now since I would wear long non-maternity tee's and blousy shirts up until this point but now I'm "Gus-Gusing" it so I definitely need to stick to only maternity tops. My pants, although maternity, are getting snug so I'm thinking of hitting up goodwill for some more bigger comfy pants soon.

Stretch marks: None yet. I've been using Honest.com's organic belly balm that I reeeeeally like. It's very greasy and my belly shines like a bowling ball that's just gone done a freshly oiled lane but I've had ZERO itchy skin. Two thumbs up for this stuff.

Sleep: Eh. This has been so so. I get up to pee every 2-4 hrs and as mentioned above, I can only rotate between left and right sides which gets old. I've got my giant "C" shaped pregnancy pillow, a body pillow, and 2 regular pillows to help me get comfy though. Ha ha. If my hubby doesn't hold securely to his pillow though, I've been known to take that as well. Don't judge.

Best moment of this week: Having another ultrasound and getting to see him again and finding out I passed my glucose tolerance test! Woo hoo! What a relief. Last time I had to do the 3hr test because they want you below 140 and I was AT 140. Ugh.

Miss anything: Sandwiches still make the list, belly sleeping, and going to Great America because its summer time. :(

Movement: SO much movement. Lots of hiccups and big belly shifts. He has an uncanny ability of knowing when I have a camera on him to catch him in action because without fail, he stops instantly and waits patiently for me to put the camera down. Little stinker.

Food cravings: Everything and anything. Unlike with Eli where I had a strong aversion to pizza, (and I think red sauce in general)  I've actually really enjoyed pizza this time around, especially home made from scratch.

Anything making you queasy or sick: Nope

Labor signs: Not yet. I don't think I'm having any Braxton hicks either but they say the second time around you should feel them earlier because now you know what to look for but apparently I don't.

Belly button in or out: My usually deep "inny" is officially now an "outy." So weird.

Wedding rings on or off: Sadly it's been off for a while now since we're in the middle of summer and I'm toasty warm for once in my life. I've resorted to using a bigger ring that I got on my honeymoon instead.

Happy or moody most of the time: Overall, happy but this past week I've felt pretty irritable at the drop of a hat, mainly because nothing is easy anymore and I swear everything I need is on the floor.

Looking forward to: The arrival of this little one in 9-10 short weeks. EEEEEK!!!

What a hambone he is with that tongue!

Until next time....

-Linds

My big guys is THREE years old!

Happy third birthday bud!

    So I guess this means we are out of the "toddler" phase, yes? He's now considered a "preschooler" I think. Well any who, he's big and some days he says things that remind me of a teenager (If you are my Facebook friend then you know what I'm talking about.) Needless to say, he sure is FUN right now! I get such a kick out of him when we are out in public. Little Mr. Extrovert (takes after his daddy), has now made it his life's mission to find out everyone's name and occupation (and if this person is extra interesting, he'll even ask them what their hair color is.) My most FAVORITE thing EVER is when he asks them their name (which is always followed by "and what's YOUR name?") and he'll go "I'm Eli, and this is my (cousin) mommy!" (I finally got him to drop the "cousin" part--awkward! No idea where he got that from) with a big elaborate hand gesture like Vanna White pointing out a letter. It's hilarious, and not to mention the total pride in his voice when he says it, just makes my heart swell! I freakin' LOVE that kid! 

   Here are his 3 year stats:

Size: Right now he is wearing 3T but the length is almost too short and the waist is too big. Thank God for those inner elastic waist cinchers that save the day. At his doc visit he was 40 inches tall (34 ¼ inches last year) and weighed in at 32lbs (28 lbs last year). So he is pretty tall as everyone points out to me.

Likes: Oh man, this kid definitely knows what he likes and doesn't like. He's BIG into legos at the moment. Mainly the little lego guys where he loves to take them apart and rearrange them a thousand times into "super cool guys." Other loves, in no particular order: Playing with papa, being a super hero, going to the park/pool, being around airplanes and pointing them out in the sky, doing puzzles (especially the giant floor puzzles), eating ice-cream, golfing, running through the sprinkler, helping me cook (and do laundry for that matter. I'm telling you, he will be an awesome husband some day!), meeting new friends, and watching his "shows".

Some of his favorite things

More of his favorite activities

Dislikes: And just as he knows what he likes, he knows exactly what he doesn't like as well. Things such as sleeping. Every day before nap and bedtime I hear "but I don't like sleeping." Now I'll just say "that's ok, you still need rest. If you don't want to sleep, you can just play quietly in your bed." This has worked like a charm because he always passes out, even if he does play for just a little bit before laying down. Other dislikes, leaving the pool/park/friends house. I recently was getting a lot of defiance and tantrums at this point but since I've started saying, "ok bud, 5 more minutes until we leave.... and 2 more minutes and then we go...etc." Now he doesn't fight me at all. 

Eating: He still eats pretty well while at home but now when we are out and about for play dates, or parties etc, he is more vocal about saying " I don't like that" before even taking a bite. Now I'll just focus on making sure he eats well prior to going out, knowing he will choose junk food be very picky elsewhere. It's reeeeally frustrating and something we're working on. He could still eat his weight in fruit and bread though. Things haven't changed there. I no longer make separate meals like I did when he was a baby/young toddler. He eats what we eat, or goes to bed hungry (or doesn't get dessert, both of these do pretty well motivating him to eat.) He's not really fond of meat yet. This is still hit or miss as far as if he'll eat it. He mainly does the veggie sides at dinner in this case. When Aaron and I take him out to dinner, I don't bother ordering him a meal because he'll eat our salads, the bread at the table, and then I happily give him my veggies! Ha ha. He's better than having a puppy at my feet!

Sleeping: He still takes a nap each day (Halleluia!) from 11-1pm. His bedtime ranges based on our summer activities but basically 7pm and he wakes up consistently between 6:15am-6:45am, which I loathe. There was a short time recently when he flat out refused naps or sleeping at night (especially if Aaron was out of town to put him to bed) unless he was in our bed. That also was a very frustrating time. But that phase passed and he now is back to going pretty willingly into his own bed.

This sleeping position never gets old to me.

Milestones: Potty training! He's all done with diapers including at night and bedtime. He spelled his name the other day (just verbally, and only the first name. No writing it yet and he just learned how to pronounce his last name! Ha! Welcome to the club buddy. You weren't the only one to struggle with that.) He can hit a baseball with me tossing the ball to him and he swims independently with his floaty on.

His cool new skivvies to celebrate being potty trained

Thats my three year old preschooler in a nutshell! Toodles!

-Linds

Eli's Batman Party for his THIRD birthday!

Eli's always been a super hero

     My son turned THREE on July 2nd! I was hoping to get away with one more year of making it no big deal, but my son wasn't having it. It's not like he's even been to a lot of birthday parties either! But this year, starting 3 months ago he mentioned having a Batman party for his birthday. What?? Where did this come from? He wasn't even 3 yet and he expected not only a party on his behalf, but a THEMED party! Wow. Well I didn't put a whole lot of stock into the notion the first time he mentioned it because toddlers change their minds every ½ second so I figured he'd just forget about it or change the theme. Nope. I'm pretty sure he referenced his Batman party every day up until THE day!

   I'll be honest here when I say I almost didn't want to even bother because I didn't want to have to be Pinterest worthy. Ha! Mommy guilt. Dang you Pinterest! If I wasn't going to go all out with the water bottle labels, and personalized cup cake liners, should I even bother? Then I came to my senses and realized hey, this is for a soon-to-be-3 year old. He could care LESS about labels he can't even read! He just wanted to play super hero! So that's what I focused on and kept all thoughts centered on what 1-3 ½ year olds would find enjoyable.

  Things like this:

Look at the size of that thing! It had a slide and basketball hoop

Shooting hoops with his buddy Parker

So much fun!

Warp speed, all the time!

And these:

All the kiddos got their own cape to wear and take home

It was like herding cats to get a pic of all the kiddos. I can't promise you that no tears were shed for this photo op :(

Can't forget one of these bad boys!

The main event at any toddler gathering: the water table, cue angels singing

Things started getting a little wild, & crazy when the mini people started disrobing and running through the sprinkler naked...

And to complete the look, some of these:

Batman Tattoos!

Eli LOVED them!

   I asked that people wear batman t-shirts or black (during a hot summer day, why not?) and my hubby and I wore our Batman shirts as well. 

I made mine using my cousin Beckie's Sillhoutte machine. I told Eli what it said and he broke out into the biggest grin. Worth. It. Speaking of the best cousin ever, I followed her Piñata tutorial to make this joker one:

It's a regular old paper bag, covered in ruffled streamers

collecting their loot

    I did heavy snacks instead of a meal because the party was from 2-5pm. Now heres a funny story to get the party started right. Just as people started to arrive, I was pulling the fruit, crackers, chips & salsa, and veggie tray out to set up on the counter. I proceed to peel back the cellophane cover off the veggie tray I picked up at Costco and I was immediately accosted by what can only be described as someone ripping a$$ an inch from my face. I grimaced and moved on. Mean while, Aldo (uncle Pibe) and my sister make a beeline to their son to check his diaper, positive he "sh&$ himself" (Uncle Pibe's words). Nope, smells divine like usual. What could that awful stench be??? Meanwhile, the great grandparents had just walked through the door and Uncle Pibe was certain it was they who, wasted no time "crop dusting" as they made their way around to greet people. Finally, you can see everyone is looking accusingly at everyone else, all the while silently pleading with their eyes to find the source and eliminate it as soon as possible. I speak up and say, "oh man, that broccoli on the veggie tray just stunk up the whole house!" I then heard a collective sigh of relief as everyone started speaking at once, sharing their theories as to the cause. Well then I lost it! (and I'm typing through belly laugh tears now). 

         "yeah! Jeeze, I checked my kids diaper multiple times then thought it      

           must be someone else's kid"--Concerned parent.

         "I thought it was the grandparents."---Annonymous (see above)

So I decided to put the tray outside on ice and burn a candle in the house, but then got similar looks from new guests arriving and had to start off my welcome greeting with "It's the veggie tray, sorry!"

The offending tray. Guilty as charged. Curse you broccoli!

 Sigh, good times. Overall I actually had a great time and Eli certainly had a blast. I'm just glad its all over. Now I get to sit back enjoy everybody else's toddler birthday parties this summer. Phew.

The guest of honor. Muuuah!

    Happy birthday my sweet boy! I love you more than you can ever know (well until YOU have kids anyway. Then you might begin to understand the depths of a parent's love) Muuuuuah! Hope this year is a great one full of lots of adventures.

   Stay tuned for his 3 year stats. He has his well visit with the doc tomorrow so I'll keep you posted.

Toodles,

Batman's mommy.

   

Our "potty training" adventure....

    Eli is potty trained! Woo hoo! He has gone a couple weeks now with ZERO accidents, including nap time and bedtime. It basically just came down to him deciding to be done peeing in a diaper. For some reason my kid poop trained BEFORE being pee trained. I've never heard of this. Anyone else's kid do it backwards too?? He's been going #2 in the potty since January, so since 2 ½ yrs old. But each time I'd ask him why he didn't want to pee in the potty he'd say "because I like my diaper. I wanna pee in a diaper mom." Well alrighty then!

    To be completely honest, I was dreading the day we would start. I liked, (no strike that) LOVED the convenience of diapers. I feel horrible admitting this but one day I had said to myself, "you know what? I'm off for the next few days, maybe we'll go diaper free and try this potty training thing." But shortly into it, he kept asking me to help him on the potty every 5 minutes and I was in the middle of cooking/meal prep and it was super annoying to drop what I was doing and help him. What kind of mother am I?? I didn't want to be inconvenienced, when with a diaper, I could change him on my time at my leisure (because he could care less about sitting in a wet diaper to be honest.) I decided long ago that I wouldn't even consider training until after he turned 3 (since I had heard that boys didn't even have the physical capability until around this time, unlike girls who can train earlier) and this experience just solidified that decision. I wanted to enjoy the freedom that diapers offered a little longer-- no navigating the inevitable public restroom pit stop (Ugh! How would I manage that?? He'd have to sit on a public toilet seat?? **shiver**) and no accidents miles from home with no spare outfit on hand. Yep, this potty thing could most definitely wait. And yep, I'm a terrible person.

    So because I decided ages ago to wait until Eli was 3, I had a very laid back approach to this whole process. I took full advantage of him barging through the closed bathroom door wanting to be with me while going potty and explained what I was doing and would excitedly ask him each time if he would like to flush the "peepees" down the drain. "Okay!!" he'd shout. And it became fun, a bonding experience if you will. After a while I'd say, "hey bud, you know, if you go poopoos in the potty then you can flush your poopies away! How fun would that be??" At first he seemed skeptical but then gave it a try one day and he's gone in the toilet ever since! I of course would jump up and down cheering him on and tell him how proud I was and he seemed to enjoy the praise just as much as the actual flushing. "Did you see me go poopoos in the potty momma? Are you so proud of me?" "I sure am bud!" And that is how it happened. Seriously. No gallons of juice given and a stop watch set for every 30 minutes. We just talked and watched and he did it. I can't emphasize enough how important it was for both of our wellbeing to not rush things when he was not physically or emotionally ready to be successful. I hear people who say their child is potty trained at 18 months and then later on find out said child still has random accidents and needs a diaper at night. That scenario does not work for this lazy mom. No siree. The diaper fund would go on and this mommy would keep what precious few strands she had left on her head.

   I bought the cutest boxer briefs for him and I can't help but grin when I pull these little skivvies out of the wash :D Unfortunately I can't find the pic I took so here's one of him modeling my potty training "prototype" last year. Such a ham!

I made these back when I thought we'd train "early". Then came to my senses and gave them to Eli's buddy Parker who is 7m older and was about to start the training process.

And that's all she wrote!

-Linds

    

My conception story...

The evidence

   Yay for a picture of pee on a stick! Hey did you know they sell pregnancy tests at the dollar store that actually work?? I had my doubts because I wondered why there are $15 dollar ones at Walmart if these exist. What a rip! Way to take advantage of hopeful couples all over the world, jerks. Do yourself a favor and just go grab a handful of these bad boys and call it a day.

   Anyways, as I was telling you in my last post, I'm super proud of my pregnancy success stories. You may be wondering how I could feel so confident in getting pregnant when this is only my second time around. Not exactly. I actually had three successful tries. I guess I was a little misleading with the title of my last post when I said it was my "second pregnancy", because technically this is our third. Last year, exactly one week sooner than I ovulated this year, I conceived. Turns out I had a blighted ovum and ended up needing a D&C. It was a very sad time for us for obvious reasons but the hardest part for me was that Steph and I were finally pregnant TOGETHER which has always been a dream of ours! What helped me cope, (other than my amazingly supportive family and friends) was that there was no baby lost. I didn't hear a heartbeat at one ultrasound and then it was gone at another. It was never there to begin with because the embryo never developed. The egg and sperm successfully joined, and implanted into my uterus, but for some reason (usually severe abnormalities with one or both the egg/sperm) the body is able to tell something isn't right, and it prevents the cells from developing into an embryo and the gestational sac is the only thing that continues to grow. So that's what helped me cope through this miscarriage-- that I didn't have an embryo/baby TO lose. So my heart truly goes out to those who have had miscarriages where there was once a heart beat. I'm so sorry. :/

     Anyways, if any of you have more questions I'd be happy to tell you more (I'm an open book) but I don't want to depress you any further with sad news when this was supposed to be an uplifting, encouraging post. Lets move on.

   So, if we talk on a regular basis, then you've no doubt heard about me obsessively rave about how cool the Take Charge of your Fertility book really is. I've talked to many struggling women about "charting" (aka taking your temperature every morning and monitoring your fertility "signs") and I have to emphasize that anybody can take their temp, but if your chart shows you ovulate every month and you still aren't getting that positive sign on that pee stick that you so long for, then its the book that can help you understand the why. For me it was obvious I didn't ovulate every month since I rarely got a period (before Eli), but it was the book that helped me put all my "signs" (changes in cervical fluid, tender breasts, cervical position, etc) together to determine a time frame for my most fertile moments. It only took 2 cycles (or 9 months in my case, waaaah!) to figure this out and then on 3 separate occasions that we "tried," I got pregnant. To me this is like having someone whisper in my ear the winning numbers of the lottery before its even played! I have a few friends who by charting learned that their luteal phase (the weeks after ovulation, before your period arrives) was too short for the fertilized egg to successfully implant. By charting, they were able to follow up with their physicians and do what was necessary to lengthen that phase, and then went on to have successful pregnancies. I had one friend who would have sex on day 14, 15 and 16 of her cycle, only to find out that although she had a 28 day cycle, she had a 16 day luteal phase and actually ovulated on day 12 of her cycle. See what happened in her case?? Month after month she couldn't get pregnant because the egg was dead and gone long before she had sex. Once she realized this through charting, the following month she had sex on day 12 and guess what? Successful pregnancy! Every person's struggle is different and not all "infertility" issues should be treated the same like the medical community is apt to do. I call it "cookie cutter care." Try to avoid this by becoming the expert on YOUR own body. Knowledge truly IS power.

      For 2 years after Eli was born, I was able to use my newfound knowledge of how my body works, to prevent pregnancy as well. I was able to use a natural form of birth control that didn't wreck havoc on my body or finances each month. The pill always made my heart race and caused my BP to go up so I hated being on it. You may be thinking "who wants to get up at the butt crack of dawn to take their temp every morning for the rest of their life as a form of birth control??! Not this girl!" But let me assure you that it's easy peasy, lemon squeezy! Now that I know how my body works, when I start to get my signs of impending ovulation, I know I have a 4 day window before that egg arrives (now that's for ME, MY body. Don't go thinking YOU have a 4 day window as well, because I don't want to get hate mail stating you had an unwanted pregnancy because I said you were safe for 4 days! YOUR charting will tell you YOUR window. With that being said...) Its only then that I start taking my temp, and abstain from sex. Once my temp-taking confirms I ovulated (by the thermal shift) then I wait another 24hrs (to ensure the egg is dead and gone) and then I'm "safe" to have "relations" again ;)  Voila! I'm only inconvenienced for a week max. (Of course you could turn to condoms during this time if you wanted.) Make sense??

    So what do you think? Awesome-sauce or am I off my rocker? Don't answer that. I still expect to see a baby boom next year! Ha ha. Just kidding. Baby making is supposed to be fun. Lets get back to that. Bow chicka wow wow! Aaaand cue Marvin Gaye: "Lets get it onnnnnn...." :)

I gave my hubby this shirt along with the positive test to let him know we were pregnant

ha ha. What a good sport

Hi honey! 20 week "selfie" ;)

Yay!! Someone's excited for a brother!

On that happy note, toodles!

-Linds

P.S, when my method fails next time and I have an "oopsie" I'll tell you all it was planned. Ha ha ha. j/k. Muuuuah!

My second pregnancy!

     

Proud big brother!

    Lets see if I even remember how to do a blog post, it's been so long! Like I mentioned last time, I found Facebook and now Instagram to replace my need to blog. Well with this second baby (BOY!) coming along, I definitely want to get back into it since I LOVE looking back on Eli's beginnings. Steph will ask me a milestone question regarding her son Liam and I'm always like "jeeze it feels so long ago since I was in that stage. I'd have to check my blog..." --Good Old Faithful coming to the rescue, recapping the little things that have long been cataloged into the deep recesses of my brain. I love this little blog and I really do love blogging.

    So where do I start? I'll do a separate post to describe my conception story since most of you already know my beginning infertility issues I discussed in this post and I'm super proud of it. When I told my husband we were indeed pregnant after our first month of trying in January, I said, "more than anything else, don't you just feel an amazing sense of accomplishment??" Ha ha. We both laughed because it was so true. There was a time were I was that girl "trying-to-conceive" and now I'm completely confident in my ability to not only GET pregnant but to NOT get pregnant while not using the traditional birth control methods. (I'm not saying all this to boast, or be cocky, but in an attempt to give other ladies out there struggling in this department, HOPE.) Stay tuned if you fall into that category because the next post will be for you :)

    Welp, I'm at the 20 week mark (as of Monday). I can't even wrap my mind around the fact that I'm half way there! Currently I feel amazing, like I'm not even pregnant, unless I feel a kick (which is all the time now.) The baby is still really low in my pelvis, and each kick makes me instinctively reach to feel so if you catch me Al Bundy style, don't judge, ha! I can't say the same thing for the first 14 weeks though. Ugh. Was that ever a dark period in my life. The long, brutal winter didn't help matters either I'm sure. I'm so thankful to still be married because I'm positive my hubby had to remind himself "through thick and thin, through sickness and in health..." multiple times a day because I was awful. I was awful and I knew I was awful, and yet had no control over how I was feeling. I had zero energy (with a toddler to chase), horrible mood swings (sorry!!), many food aversions, everything stunk (easy on the cologne/perfume people!) and all day queasiness. We went to Hawaii when I was 9 weeks pregnant and although I enjoyed it, now when I think of it, I get nauseous. Such a sad way to remember a beautiful place. I think my hubby should take me back when I'm not pregnant so I can make new, happy memories :D

     I found a fun pregnancy questionnaire online that I thought I'd go through and answer so here it is:

How far along: 20 weeks!

Total weight gain: I'm up 10lbs

Maternity clothes: Heck yeah! I even wore maternity pants for comfort before I was pregnant (see above about not judging, ha ha)

Stretch marks: None yet. I did end up with a nasty "star burst" looking stretch mark under my right breast after Eli was born. Probably from the NASTY engorgment I had when my milk came in. But now its completely faded and I have to really search to find where it was.

Sleep: sleeping great but I have an earlier bed time.

Best moment of this week: having our 2o week ultrasound to find out the sex of the baby and to have so many friends anxiously awaiting the announcement as well.

Miss anything: Sandwiches. I really want some deli meat but the fear of listeria will keep me from eating one until after the baby comes.

Movement: SO much movement. Little "thumps" started at 15 and ½ weeks and they've gotten progressively stronger ever since. 

Food cravings: just like with Eli, everything sounds good. I'm gravitating more towards sweets but right now I can't open my fridge without grabbing a handful of the 4 lb box of green grapes that I got at Costco the other day. Good thing I bought the big one...

Anything making you queasy or sick: Nothing now except thinking of Hawaii. (So sad!) In the beginning it was black beans & tortillas that were the strongest aversions but really everything was unappealing. I had to remind myself that I loved certain foods and to just eat them. Once I started eating I was fine. It was the getting-it-into-my-mouth part that was a struggle.

Have you started to show yet: Yep. I was super bloated at 9 weeks! (See pic below.)

Gender: Boy!!

Labor signs: No. And stay that way for another 19 weeks. Pleaseandthankyou.

Belly button in or out: It's completely gone already! I was in the 30 wks range when that happened with Eli. Yikes!

Wedding rings on or off: On, but with the warmer weather on the horizon, probably not for long.

Happy or moody most of the time: Now I'm a happy camper. I feel like I have a pretty good sense of humor usually, but while pregnant, everything is 100x funnier. Not sure why that is...

Looking forward to: dressing the bump and watching it grow. I'm obsessed with baby bellies!

9 wks in Hawaii. My face says it all. Yowzers!

How great is this ultrasound pic?? Baby #2 at 10wks