He's Here!

Well, it's been just over two weeks now since Peter made his appearance into this world and I am finally getting around to writing his birth story. I mainly want to document this so I can remember it later, but I also really love reading other women's birth stories so I wanted to share mine as well.

I can already tell it will be a struggle to keep this somewhat concise. It's difficult to sum up a 28 hour labor in a few paragraphs. As the day went on, I made notes in my phone about what happened and when so I could blog about it now. However, I think it's probably best to ditch the hour by hour summary I originally started (when I thought it might be 8 hours or so) and go for a more general overview now. 

41 Weeks

I wasn't progressing toward labor by my due date but I wanted to go into labor naturally so we kept waiting another week (and I tried every home remedy I could to try to start labor). At my 41 week appointment, we learned that my body was producing more amniotic fluid each day to accommodate my growing baby. (Typically you lose fluid at the end of your pregnancy.) Instead of Peter dropping down and putting pressure on my cervix causing dilation and effacement, he was actually floating up and getting farther away from where he needed to be. We decided to go ahead and induce that night. We left my midwife appointment was about 4:30 p.m. and met my parents at Applebee's for an early dinner. (My parents arrived on Sunday and we induced on Monday night.) We arrived at the hospital at 6:00 for my induction to begin, but there had just been a crazy fast labor (baby came 3 minutes after they arrived at the hospital after driving 125 mph to get there!) and everyone was tied up with them so we just got put in a room and we watched TV for about two hours while we waited for someone to come check us in and get things going. 

A nurse finally came in about 8:00 and things got started from there. They gave me a pill that was going to thin out my cervix and a sleeping pill so I could get some rest before labor really got going the next morning. The plan was to start Pitocin the next morning but I woke up about 2:15 a.m. and felt some pretty strong contractions. I labored on my own for about an hour before I woke Kory up and called a nurse because I could just barely breathe through the contractions. She helped me get in the jacuzzi tub, which sounded really relaxing and ended up being very painful! The jets were SO powerful I could barely force myself to stay in there for about 15 minutes.  

Going into this labor, I really wanted to do it medication-free, but I always gave myself the freedom to change my mind during labor. I held out until almost 5:00 am before I realized this pain was going to be more than I wanted to/would be able endure "naturally". I was still only at 2 cm and not completely effaced and I knew I had a long road ahead of me. My contractions were one minute apart and lasting 30-40 seconds so I just felt like I couldn't catch my breath and recover in between. 

I got pain medication including an epidural and it was absolutely the right decision for me. My labor continued to progress very slowly and they started Pitocin mid-day Tuesday. I slept off and on through the day as the meds made me very sleepy (and also quite sick to my stomach, so I vomited several times). I spent the day texting friends, watching TV, visiting with my parents and Kory, napping, and thanking God for the gift of modern medicine and pain relief.

By about 7:40 that night, my nurse figured I was probably getting close to fully dilated and effaced, so she checked me one last time. I was finally ready and she decided we should start practicing pushing so I could be ready for the real deal when my midwife finished delivering the baby across the hall. I still had the epidural at this time so pushing was really difficult because I couldn't really feel if I was doing it correctly. We kept practicing and basically just never stopped. After about an hour and a half of pushing, my midwife, Cherie, said she needed to go get the OB and bring him in because we weren't really making progress and we needed to talk about our options.

The OB-GYN Cherie works under, Dr. Wonderly, is a good friend of ours from church and even though I wasn't under his care, he stayed around for my whole labor and delivery to make sure everything went well. He came in and explained that 95% of the time, women who've pushed as long as I had and haven't really made progress aren't going to be able to deliver the baby vaginally. Peter's head was kind of stuck and he was having trouble making his way down because of it. I was really determined to avoid a c-section if at all possible so I asked if we could keep trying and told him I knew I could do it if they'd just let me try. He asked if I could push for another hour and I told him I definitely could. What I didn't know at this point was that they had turned my epidural off and pumped up the Pitocin so that my pushing could be more productive. If they told me they were going to do that, I probably would have folded and said I couldn't do it, so I'm grateful they didn't tell me what was going on.

Kory was holding one of my legs and counting through the pushes and coaching me and encouraging me and being all around amazing the whole time. I truly can't get over how helpful he was to me in delivery. After another hour of pushing, Dr. Wonderly came back in and said we had made enough progress to keep going and that he believed I could push this baby out without surgery. I was so thrilled! However, I had no idea that we were just over half-way through this pain. I ended up pushing for just over 4 hours. I asked Cherie to let me know when I could feel his head coming out as I thought that would be good motivation for me to keep going. I am so thankful I did that as it gave me the boost of energy I needed at the very moment where I was saying, "I can't do this. Maybe I should have got the c-section. I can't do this anymore."

One of the coolest parts of the whole experience was that Kory got to be the one to actually deliver him.  Peter's head and shoulders were out and Cherie had me quit pushing and told Kory to reach down and grab Peter under the arms and pull him out. In addition to being the biggest physical relief I have ever felt in my entire life, I will never forget the sight of Kory holding our baby boy and turning to give him to me.

Peter was born at 12:03 a.m. on Wednesday, November 5. He weighed 8 lbs. 7 oz. and was 21 in. long. His head and chest both measured 14.5 inches. These past two weeks have been really difficult and really amazing! We can't stop thanking God for this newest blessing He's given us.

Next up, I'll share about our extended hospital stay and what I've learned in the past two weeks of being a mom. 

40 Weeks

How Far Along: 40 Weeks

Food Comparison: Mini Pumpkin (Ultrasound today showed him weighing 8 lbs 11 oz, give or take 1/2 lb)

Weight Gain: 42 pounds

Maternity Clothes: I have very little clothing that fits at this point. Stretchy pajama pants and Kory's t-shirts are my friends.

Sleep: Compared to pre-pregnancy days, it's awful. Compared to life with a newborn, I am probably sleeping pretty well. :)

Miss Anything: I miss when things like putting on pants, getting out of a car, or turning over in bed were quick and pain-free.

Movement: Lots and lots of it and he is getting strong, so they aren't sweet and small movements like they used to be.

Food Cravings: Junk. I want lots of stuff that's bad for me and I am not really interested in fruits or veggies at all.

Anything making you queasy or sick: Not really. 

Gender: Boy.

Belly button in or out: Out, but not by a lot.

Wedding ring on or off:  Been off for about a month now.

Happy or moody most of the time: Happy and excited!

Looking forward to: All of it. Labor, delivery, meeting Peter, seeing Kory as a dad, not being pregnant, being a mom.

Midwife says: I have progressed very little towards labor, but Peter and I are both healthy and doing great! We will go back to see her Thursday and talk about possible induction plans then. 

The sonographer also said we have a large-headed baby who is in the 85th percentile right now. We hope he's got a strong neck to support that giant noggin. :) 

Question of the week: Are you ready? 

Yes! We are ready on all levels, but we are not anxious or miserable. It was a great due date day for me anyway as I got my braces off today! My orthodontist was able to fulfill his promise of getting them off before I gave birth, so now Peter can come join us anytime! :)

#comeonPeter!

Peter's Nursery

We finally finished Peter's nursery yesterday! It feels so good to have that done. Of course, as soon as we "finished" it, we found two more things that need to be hung on the walls, but I'm calling it good enough for now.

The room turned out exactly like I wanted it: simple, cute, and makes me happy when I walk in the door. I didn't want a room overflowing with "stuff"and I didn't want something so "theme-y" that it couldn't be re-used or grow with Peter.

We have both a rocking chair and glider because we were given both and I think they look great in the room. One of them may eventually move out of the room, but for now, I like that Kory and I both have a place to sit in there.

There are a few baby items not pictured as we have a Pack and Play and a swing in the living room and a co-sleeper bassinet in our room. Things might get moved around as we find what works best for us and Peter, but this arrangement is good for now.

Ok, onto the pictures. The lighting in our house is SO weird. I re-took these pictures a jillion times and opened curtains/blinds, turned on lamps, turned off overhead lights...none of it seemed to matter. Oh well, you still get the idea, even if the picture quality is not great.

Panoramic View of the Room

View right as you walk in the door. Curtains made by my mom.

This orange wall was overwhelming at first, but it works well once the room is filled.

The oar was actually our first garage sale find and the inspiration behind the rest of the room.

Built-in dresser drawers and a counter really help to free up space in the room.

I want to live in this glider-it's SO comfortable!

An organized closet makes me giddy. 

These shutter doors remind us that we live in a house built in the 70s. 

Mt. Everest hangs above the crib for Peter Everest

My mom made this bedding, which I absolutely love!

We are ridiculously excited to get to read these books with Peter.

So, there you have it. We are really pleased with the way it turned out and even more thrilled to meet the little boy who inspired it all.

Lately

(I started this about 2 weeks ago and kept forgetting to finish it up and publish it. Hence, some of it is kind of old news, but I'm hitting publish anyway.)

Here's a small peek into the craziness that is my brain lately:

My latest favorite nickname for Peter is "peetatoes" :) I am still not a huge fan of Pete, yet I find myself calling him that. I am working on it. I actually really love his middle name, Everest, and want to call him Everest but Kory says no...I am working on that as well.

I am completely obsessed with foxes these days. Anyone else? It's mainly in baby clothes, but I want to own every single thing I see with cute little foxes on it. I even packed Peter a fox outfit for his clothes to wear home from the hospital. (I just started packing our hospital bags this weekend after reading a million blogs about what to pack.)

Speaking of blogs, I read this quote in a blog shared by my friend, Julie, today and it's really stuck with me. "Our kids need grace so much more than they need organic vegetables." That's not a popular thought these days, particularly in a place like Oregon, but I can't quit thinking about it.

I have heard lots about the nesting instinct that comes late in pregnancy, but no one told me it became a total obsession that takes over your life! The nursery closet, specifically, has been my obsession for the past couple weeks. I worked on it every evening after work (if I was home), I dreamed about it, and I made to-do lists for how to organize it when I wasn't at home. I am happy to say it's looking good these days and I don't have any more work to do in there until we get some more baby items. 

I moved the co-sleeper into our room where Peter will sleep for a while after he's born. For now, it makes a really great pillow holder! 

I have always felt a strong need to prove people wrong. I am one of those people who thrive on doing something that other people said I couldn't do. Pregnancy has amplified that as people tend to be very negative about the end of my pregnancy, labor/delivery, and having a newborn. I would love to say I am rising above the pettiness and not thinking about what other people say...but that's just not true. I know myself well enough to know my own stubborn ways. (I painted my own toenails at 36 weeks, just to prove that I could. Granted, my belly isn't that big, so it wasn't as hard as it would be for some other gals I'm sure.)

One of the very best gifts I received at my baby shower (which I haven't blogged about yet but fully intend to) was the freedom to not write thank you notes! Before I began opening gifts, my best friend, Abby, who planned the shower announced to the guests, "You didn't even know it, but each of you brought an extra gift for Mandy. Part of your gift to her is the fact that she is not required to write you a thank you note. Is everyone ok with that?" Of course, heads were nodded and I was overjoyed! I made double sure to thank everyone in person for their gifts at least once, and then I didn't come home with the burden of a jillion thank you notes to write. This was seriously a huge blessing to me! I have written thank you notes to people who have given us gifts and weren't in attendance at the shower, but it's been very manageable to do just a couple a day. I am caught up right now and it feels good!

Because I realize my life is about to change in a huge way, I have been buying gifts way ahead of time lately. I have gifts for several people with birthdays in November already and even have a few Christmas gifts taken care of. AND, I have a list going on my phone with everything I have purchased so I will remember those gifts when I am quite sleep-deprived. It's great to feel like I'm on top of things. I feel certain it will be a while before I feel this way again. :)

I have been out of town for work 5 days in these last two weeks. Kory was gone this weekend for a retreat with some of our high school students. He will be preaching next weekend, which means he's out of commission most of the weekend preparing for and attending 4 different services. He is out of town the following weekend for a men's retreat with our church. I am beginning to think we need to have this baby so we will finally get some time together!

Our washing machine and dishwasher have both developed issues lately. Both are still working, but the washing machine no longer does a final spin cycle so clothes come out really, really wet. The dishwasher is just not getting dishes very clean, and we have tried a lot of different things to fix it. I really love watching YouTube videos on how to repair things like this, but I think it's time we just call a repair man and get a professional to fix them this time. I am not really in any shape to be taking machines apart and crawling in and behind appliances. The washing machine definitely needs to be fixed before we have a lot of body-fluid-covered-baby clothes to wash every day!

It's been pretty hot here lately! We have had a lot of days in the high 90s and that is just not typical Oregon weather! I am very ready for cooler Fall temperatures and some rain. NM and Texas are flooding and I am stuck inside because it's 99 degrees outside--so bizarre! 

Kory's birthday is coming up next week, so we are in the midst of the annual holiday I made up called "Birthday Kwanzaa". Essentially, he gets one (smallish) gift every day for a week leading up to his actual birthday. I started this tradition when we moved to Oregon and had no family or friends around to help us celebrate birthdays. Thankfully, the friends part has changed, but it's still fun to extend the celebration beyond just one day. 

                             

Ok, that's all the randomness I can spill for one day. I'm about to go for a walk with my friend, Sky, and our stroller. I'm going to try to get Sky used to walking next to the stroller--we'll see how that goes! At least he can freak out now and knock the stroller over and it won't hurt anything. 

37 Weeks

Not too much has changed since last week, so I thought I'd answer some Frequently Asked Questions that I'm getting several times a day now.

How Far Along: 37 Weeks

Food Comparison: Swiss Chard (19.25 in. and 6.3 lb.) 

Are you still working? When will you quit? How long will you be off work? Yes, I am still working. I don't know for sure when I'll stop working. My plan for now is to work up until I have Peter--not necessarily until the very last minute possible, but I do want to save my maternity leave for time with Peter as much as possible. As of right now, I plan to begin my leave on Monday, October 27, but we'll see how that changes over the next few weeks. I will take 12 weeks of maternity leave. 

How do you feel? This is really a different answer every day. Today, my answer would be "good! I got a good night's sleep and am feeling pretty energetic today." Last week, I wasn't feel this way at all. I got a cold and was feeling sore and sluggish and very pregnant and there were moments I just wasn't sure I could make it for another month. Thankfully, I realized I was getting sick and took some cold medicine (including a night time formula that helps me sleep at night) and I feel like a brand new woman! 

Do you have a birth plan? Will you get an epidural? I do have a birth plan. I wasn't going to make one because I tend to make specific plans and then get disappointed when things don't go that way, but my midwife encouraged me to make a birth plan with an "ideal birth" as well as a "plan B", so that we at least know what I'd really like to happen. I understand it might change and, at least for now, I am ok with that. 

I do not plan to get an epidural or any other pain medication. However, I reserve the right to change my mind in the midst of labor. :) I really do hope to be able to give birth naturally and will do my best to make that happen. 

You have a midwife--does that mean you're doing a home birth? No, I will give birth in a hospital. My midwife will be with me there and if something happens and I need to have a c-section, the OB-GYN that she works under (who attends my church and I consider a friend) would perform the surgery for me/Peter.

Will you go back to work after baby? Good question. I think I will, but nothing is set in stone. At this time, I'm hoping to return to work Part-Time in mid-January, but we'll see how I feel once Peter arrives as well as how our finances look, what works best for our family, etc. There are a lot of factors to consider, so we will make this decision after Peter is born and we've got a better grasp on what life with a baby looks like. 

Are you nervous/excited/scared/freaking out? No/Yes/No/Not really. A friend remarked recently that I seem very calm and it helped me see that I feel very calm. I've prayed for peace and I believe God has granted it to me. I don't feel like I'm super hormonal or emotional these days. I feel excited and happy and am trying to soak up all this time with just Kory and I while we still have it. I'm also sleeping in and taking naps every weekend...and thoroughly enjoying the fact that I can still do that! I think part of the reason I'm not scared is that I really have no idea what I'm about go through. I told someone yesterday that the not knowing is a gift, and I think that's really true. I've prepared myself as much as I can, but I don't really know what labor/delivery/having a newborn is like...and I think it's probably best because I'm not worrying now about what I can't control later. Again, I consider it a gift from God and I will enjoy it while I have it. 

When will he be born? How big is he? Who does he look like? We live in an age of incredible technology, but there are still some unknowns. All of these things are in God's hands, so I'll be surprised with everyone else to learn the answers to these questions. 

36 Weeks

How Far Along: 36 Weeks

Food Comparison: Romaine Lettuce (18.75 in. and 5.75 lb.) 
As a side note, the measurements I'm listing here are the average for babies at this stage--I have no idea how much Peter actually weighs or how long he is right now.

Weight Gain: 36 pounds 

Maternity Clothes: My wardrobe is pretty small these days. I have two pairs of work pants that fit me: one pair of black pants and one pair of khaki pants. I have two pairs of jeans that fit (one pair are capris). I have maybe 3 long-sleeve shirts that aren't t-shirts. It's forcing me to be creative in the outfits I put together and is really helping me see that I can make it just fine without a lot of clothes. (I do have plenty of short-sleeve shirts and dresses that I wear pretty frequently--I'm just having to pair them with leggings and cardigans now as the weather cools off.)

Sleep:  Could be better, could be worse. My hips are the main thing giving me problems these days, and it is pretty painful to turn over in bed and try to get comfortable. 

Miss Anything: I can't think of anything I haven't already said.

Movement: He's definitely still moving a lot, but I can tell he's running out of room in there. His movements are much more contained and not as wild as they once were.  

Food Cravings: Ice cream. Specifically, vanilla ice cream with chocolate syrup, pecans and crushed Oreos. I've made it more than a few times for dessert this past week. 

Anything making you queasy or sick: No, I can't really think of anything. 

Gender: Boy.

Stretch Marks: I finally had a couple show up on the left side of my belly, just above my hip. I also found a small one extending from my appendix scar. I'm not too upset about them, but I would be perfectly ok if they didn't invite any other stretch mark friends to the party.

Labor signs: None. I haven't been feeling Braxton Hicks, except that I occasionally reach down and notice my belly is hard, especially when I'm going for a walk. My midwife assures me that labor contractions are much the same and I won't feel them at all either ;) 

Belly button in or out: It kind of depends. Sometimes I look down and it's very crater-like and definitely in. Other times, it's poking out, though not a lot. I'm thinking it has to do with his position and whether or not he's pushing out on that part of my belly.

Wedding ring on or off:  Finally off. It happened about week 35. I even tried wearing my rings this weekend and they slid on very easily. Big mistake! I almost tore my skin on my fingers trying to get them off later, so I'm definitely done with rings for this pregnancy.

Happy or moody most of the time: Definitely happy, but I have cried at a couple silly things recently--remember that video of The Lion King (the musical) cast singing Circle of Life on an airplane? Yeah, I watched it again yesterday and couldn't even make it through the whole thing because I was crying too much. No clue why!

Looking forward to: This probably seems obvious, but holding my baby! Also, I pulled some Fall/Winter clothes out the other day and got excited to (eventually) wear some different clothes. I understand what women mean when they say they got really tired of their maternity clothes by the end. 

Other symptoms: I found out this week that I have pregnancy carpal tunnel syndrome. I didn't even know that was a thing until now. My hands, specifically my fingers and knuckles hurt really bad in the night and when I wake up in the morning. They don't bother me too much during the day, unless I am bending my fingers and flexing them. My midwife said I could buy wrist braces to help with the pain, but I'd have to sleep in them, so I've decided I'm close enough now to just deal with the pain. 

Swollen feet! As you can see in the picture above, nothing but sandals fit on my chubby feet these days. They still don't hurt me too much as long as I am able to put them up at night when I get home from work. 

Midwife says: I am measuring right on track (to the day!) to deliver on October 27. She won't start checking me for progress until 38 weeks, so I won't know much more until then. It's pretty crazy that October starts tomorrow and I can then say that I should get to meet my baby later this month! :)  

33 Weeks

(I am on a work trip this week so I had to take my own picture, after I was already in my pj's and remembered it was Monday.) 

How Far Along: 33 Weeks

Food Comparison: Pineapple (17 in and 4 lbs)

Weight Gain: I don't know. I never weigh myself except to answer this question. At my Appt last week I think I had gained 29 pounds? 

Maternity Clothes:  Shirts and dresses are getting shorter every day. As the weather gets cooler, I am thinking I can use long tank tops and leggings to make these maternity clothes work for a couple more months. I just hope it doesn't get too cool before he is born because all of my maternity stuff is for summer weather! 

Sleep:  Not great, but I feel like I am getting used to it, so I guess that's a good thing. I am not as exhausted as I was a few weeks ago, even though I am not sleeping much better. I assume it's just God's way of slowly preparing me for a newborn. 

Miss Anything: Laying on my back. Really miss it! I often daydream about getting to sleep on my back again...more than I daydream about meeting my baby :)

Movement:  He moves like crazy, until someone wants to feel him move and then he is perfectly still the entire time they have their hand on my stomach. 

Food Cravings: Burger King chicken sandwich, fries, and Hershey's pie. I want this every single day. (I don't have it every day, I just want to.)

Anything making you queasy or sick: Hunger. I have been snacking a lot more frequently lately but I still get hit with a wave of nausea at least once every single day and eating is the only thing that I can do to make it stop. 

Gender: Boy. Or that's what they tell me anyway. I will be in for a wild surprise if that's not true. 

Labor signs: None. I am especially thankful for that since I am currently in a hotel about 2 hours away from my husband and midwife :)

Belly button in or out: Just barely, barely out. 

Wedding ring on or off: On. I did have a scary moment when it got stuck last week, but it was 97 degrees that day and I was super swollen. My rings still fit normally otherwise. 

Happy or moody most of the time: Happy with a touch of easily irritated. 

Looking forward to: Working more in the nursery to get it organized and arranged. We should be getting our crib this week and I feel like having that put together will make this all a little more real! 

I want to remember: That people continue to tell me, "You are all belly. You haven't gained a pound anywhere else." I appreciate it; it's so nice to hear. It's just simply not true, but still so flattering. I mean, any woman who's ever been pregnant knows it can't be true, right? Is that just what you say because you know it's nice to hear? I obviously much prefer it to people telling me I am gigantic and huge and whale-like, but it is also really hard for me to just accept the compliment and not correct someone when they say it.  

I'm surprised by: how quickly this last trimester is going! A LOT of people told me these last few months would drag on and on. I know I still have 7 weeks to go, but it is going by so fast for me. I am sure the fact that I am still working and staying involved at church is a huge part of that, which only reaffirms my decisions about keeping busy and thinking about things other than this pregnancy. (I am taking time to rest, so don't worry about that.) 

31 Weeks

How Far Along: 31 Weeks

Food Comparison: Coconut (3 1/3 pounds and 16 in.)

Weight Gain: 24 pounds

Maternity Clothes: Some of my maternity clothes are getting too tight! I did not foresee this happening. I've already had to put some aside in a 'too small' pile. I'm not loving the idea of buying more clothes with only two months to go, but it just might happen. 

Sleep: Not sleeping well lately. Kory's been gone quite a bit lately though, so I'm hoping it's more about him being gone than about me sleeping this badly for the rest of this pregnancy. 

Miss Anything: Sleeping on my back. 

Movement:  To say yes would be the understatement of the century. I've been tracking my baby kicks lately because I'm supposed to feel at least 10 movements in one hour and I rarely reach 2-3 minutes before I have felt 10 movements. I'm getting quite a bit of feet in the rib action lately too and it's not my favorite. 

Food Cravings: I've been eating some random meals lately. I just look in the fridge and grab all the things that sound good to me at that moment. One day my lunch was tomatoes, watermelon, a pickle, string cheese, taquitos, and Oreos. The next night I had watermelon, waffles, popcorn, M&M's, and colby jack cheese for supper.  

Anything making you queasy or sick: I have encountered several smells this week that just about made me lose my lunch. Once it was walking into the bathroom at work, once it was opening the trash can to throw something away and once it was opening the refrigerator at work and getting hit by the smell of something that had been in there WAY too long. 

Gender: Boy boy boy.

Labor signs: No. I'm pretty sure I'm having Braxton Hicks contractions, but I don't feel really confident that I can say when they start and end. I just notice that my belly is hard and realize that must be what's going on. 

Belly button in or out: Flat and headed out.

Wedding ring on or off: On. I don't feel like they've really gotten much tighter, unless my fingers are really swollen, which is mainly when I'm hot.

Happy or moody most of the time: Mostly happy. Kory being gone tends to make me a little more emotional so I feel like I've been set off by smaller things this week, but I would still say I'm happy more than not.

Looking forward to: This weekend! Kory's mom and both of my parents are coming for my baby shower this weekend!! I am so excited! :)

I want to remember: That pregnancy doesn't really prepare you to have a baby. I imagined it would be a good training ground for what's to come, but the fact is that my life is pretty much the same as before I was pregnant--I just put my feet up more, go to bed a little earlier and take a longer time getting up the stairs. 

I'm surprised by: How few people actually touch my belly. I know I still have two months left, but I can probably count on one hand how many people have done it so far and every time they've apologized right after. It still doesn't bother me, but I do notice people reaching for it and then pulling their hand away when they realize what they're doing. 

29 Weeks

How Far Along: 29 weeks

Food Comparison: Butternut Squash

Weight Gain: 22 pounds

Maternity Clothes: Oh yeah, definitely. I do have quite a few pre-pregnancy dresses for work that I can still wear but this growing belly is making them shorter every day.

Sleep: Still sleeping pretty well! I only wake up to go to the restroom once or maybe twice a night and I fall back asleep pretty easily afterwards. I do find myself tossing and turning more in the night trying to get comfortable, but I'm still grateful to sleeping well overall. 

Best Moment of this week: Going hiking to a couple waterfalls with Kory's brother, Kevin, and his girlfriend, Lauren, who came to visit for a few days. I was quite impressed at how my body held up and didn't feel like I really held everybody back like I figured I would.

Miss Anything: Eating less food in a day. I always thought it would be awesome to eat so much in pregnancy, but it's honestly kind of annoying to me. I have to eat because I'm feeling nauseous but I'm not really feeling "hungry", per se, which means nothing sounds good and I have to force myself to eat something semi-healthy. 

Movement: Oh man, there has been a LOT of movement! It's so fun watching my belly roll all around. The past two weeks have been the first time I've seen more than just small kicks. 

Food Cravings: High school students love asking what my craziest craving has been and I hate to disappoint them and say I haven't really had anything weird. I just tell them I've been craving pickles and cheese, which is true...but it's also not a pregnancy thing. It's just a weird Mandy thing.

Anything making you queasy or sick: I don't think so; nothing I can think of right now at least.

Gender: All boy.

Labor signs: No.

Belly button in or out: Flat.

Wedding ring on or off: On, but I've been taking them off any time I'm outside because I swell so easily. 

Happy or moody most of the time: Happy!

I want to remember: A cool moment I had at work today. I was sitting at my desk and felt what I think was a foot pushing out against the right side of my belly. I could feel that it was really hard in that spot and I kind of pushed the foot back in to see what happened. He immediately pushed back against me and I just had this realization that we were almost touching each other and that it was MY SON and we would soon be able to do this without a belly in between! Even though I've felt pregnant for a long time now, I still have these moments where it hits me that it is a live, human baby inside of me and that I get to meet him and see/touch/hear/kiss him in just a couple months! 

26 Weeks

How Far Along: 26 weeks

Food Comparison: Green Onion (14 in. long, weighs about 1.75 lb..)

Weight Gain: 15 pounds according to my home scale (Dr. office always shows more)

Maternity Clothes: Almost exclusively, with maybe one or two flowy shirts from pre-pregnancy

Sleep: Pretty good! Only complaint is the heart-burn I'm getting every night, but it's not keeping me from sleeping really, just uncomfortable when I wake up throughout the night.

Best Moment of this week: We got carpet installed in all 3 bedrooms and we're finally getting to put the nursery together! There isn't much in there, but it's fun to see it developing.

Miss Anything: Laying on my stomach. I'm not typically a stomach-layer, but I've been really wanting to lay on the bed on my stomach lately.

Movement: Not as much as before...I'm wondering if I'm just getting used to it and not noticing it as much? I'm going to make a concerted effort to pay attention now and see if he's moving a lot and I'm just not realizing it. (I'm not concerned, by the way, as he is moving some and I don't believe there are any problems.)

Food Cravings: This past week there has been a lot of food I want but don't have available to me locally...specifically Rosa's chips and queso, a Chic-fil-a chicken sandwich, and a Bahama Bucks Bahama Rama Mama in watermelon :)

Anything making you queasy or sick: Just going too long without eating. I keep thinking I'll learn not to wait so long...but I don't. 

Gender: All boy.

Labor signs: No.

Belly button in or out: Barely In. It won't be long now.

Wedding ring on or off: On. We had some really hot weather for the past week or two and my rings were pretty tight if I was out in the heat, but they always came off once I got back inside where it was cool. 

Happy or moody most of the time:  Happy! I am still feeling good and have a pretty good amount of energy. I'm not huge and uncomfortable (yet!), so I'm calling this the sweet spot.

Looking forward to: My appointment this week with the midwife to hear his heartbeat. It feels like it's been a really long time since I heard it (even though the appointments are always 3-4 weeks apart). 

I am surprised by: My size: I thought I'd be a lot bigger at 6 months pregnant. I am also surprised how quickly this pregnancy is flying by! I can't believe I'm already starting the 3rd trimester. It feels like a long time ago that I found out I was pregnant, but it also feels like I was just starting my 2nd trimester a couple days ago. 

I want to remember: That I like the way I look right now! I feel pregnant, not fat, and I don't mind showing my bump off at all (fully clothed, of course). I'm sure that mine and baby's good health has contributed to that. Plus, I've got the pregnancy perks of clear skin (the best it's been in my whole life!) and super healthy hair and nails.(There are some physical downsides as well, but I'm focusing on the good parts here on this blog!)

23 Weeks

How Far Along: 23 weeks

Food Comparison: Large Mango (just over 1 lb in weight and 12 inches long)

Weight Gain: 16 pounds

Maternity Clothes: You betcha.  It's frustrating how many places have all their maternity clothing online, however. I can't try it on and my body is growing and changing all the time so I don't really know what will fit and what won't. Stinking Target has terrible return policies and has not been my friend in this matter. Old Navy, on the other hand, has been a shining star! 

Sleep: This week has been good for sleep! I got my Snoogle pillow in this week and it's heavenly!! 

Best Moment of this week: Date night with Kory last weekend. We picked up dinner and rented The Lego Movie. It was so good! I'd definitely watch it again. It's becoming clear to me that free time for just the two of us will soon be much more difficult to arrange, so I'm soaking it up now while I can. 

Miss Anything: Kory. He's gone for a week on a youth group trip, which is why I had to take a bathroom selfie for my weekly picture. It's a crooked picture but I was on my break at work and needed to hurry so I could go eat a snack, so this is the best I got. 

Movement:  I haven't noticed too much movement in the day time, but after reading Happiest Baby on the Block, I think it's because he's sleeping more in the day when I am moving and active. When I lay down in bed at night is a different story, though. That's when the party gets started for my little dude!

Food Cravings: Nothing specific, but I've been blown away at how I can get an idea in my head of what sounds good and I CANNOT think about anything else. Tonight I drove by Domino's on the way home from work and got a whiff of their pizza and couldn't quit thinking about it. I have groceries at home and knew I should eat here and not spend more money, but after about an hour and a half of trying to convince myself otherwise, I broke down and ordered a pizza. 

Anything making you queasy or sick: My office is next door to the trash company and that combined with our warm weather lately has made the air outside our office smell pretty rank. I felt sick walking to my car this evening.

Gender: Boy. Peter Everest Mereness to be exact :) 

Labor signs: No.

Belly button in or out: In. I don't feel like my tummy has grown too much (if at all?) this week so it looks about the same as last week to me.

Wedding ring on or off: On. It really heated up this week though and I could tell my fingers and toes were both swelling. I had a hard time getting my ring off one evening and my flip flops were too tight to wear one night as well.  

Happy or moody most of the time: Happy, except on the day Kory left and I was an emotional wreck that day. Thankfully, I'm better now and am enjoying some time alone to watch my TV shows on Netflix that Kory won't watch with me :) 

Looking forward to: Finding some stuff for the nursery. We've got a general idea of how we'd like to decorate it, so I need to find fabric and paint colors next. 

I am surprised by: How quickly this 2nd trimester has gone. The first trimester went by pretty slowly and I remember feeling like October was SO far away! Now, it's already July and I'm closing in on that 3rd trimester and it feels like I've done nothing to prepare for baby in these first 5 months. I guess I'm partly holding out for those nesting hormones to kick in and give me some real motivation to get moving! 

22 Weeks

How Far Along: 22 weeks

Food Comparison: Spaghetti Squash (1 lb in weight and 11 inches long)

Weight Gain: 11 lbs according to my bathroom scale, but 16 lbs according to the scales at my midwife's office today

Maternity Clothes: Oh yeah. I'm working on accumulating some more maternity clothes now because it's about 75% of my wardrobe these days. 

Stretch Marks: No.

Sleep: I haven't slept well while sick this past week, but I can tell that my body is already adjusting to less sleep. I haven't felt as exhausted in the morning as I used to when I woke up several times a night. 

Best Moment of this week: Kory got to feel the movement in my belly for the first time. I also see my belly pulsing from the outside for the first time this week. 

Miss Anything: Cokes. I haven't given them up completely, but I find that I am craving them just about every day, several times a day. 

Movement: Lots of it! :) I feel it all day long instead of just when I'm laying down at night. It's still not really strong, but I know that will continue to happen as the weeks go by. 

Food Cravings: Hamburgers and potato chips are still the things that sound good pretty much all the time. Thankfully, watermelon has also joined that list. 

Anything making you queasy or sick: Not anything specifically. I do find that my gag reflex is incredibly sensitive and I can get sick from really small things like brushing my teeth, coughing, or when some food from an earlier meal comes out of my braces.  

Have you started to show yet: Most definitely. I think I will take this question off in the future because it will be an obvious yes for the next 18 weeks. 

Gender: All boy. That was confirmed at our ultrasound and anatomy scan today. 

Labor signs: None, though I did have my first contraction this week. It kind of freaked me out but I think it may have been because I got a little dehydrated while sick (I wasn't drinking as much water because swallowing hurt so bad). It actually felt pretty cool and didn't hurt at all...if only they could all be like that!

Belly button in or out: In. Kory had his shirt off the other day and I saw his belly button and was amazed at how deep it is! I think I've already forgotten what it looks like to not be so stretched and shallow.

Wedding ring on or off: On. It seems to be fitting well at this point. 

Happy or moody most of the time: Happy. The only times I've been moody are when the person bringing my food takes too long :) 

Looking forward to: Feeling more distinct movement and knowing a little better where he is in my belly. The ultrasound tech today helped me to figure out where he is and what body part of his I'm feeling move. 

I am annoyed by: my co-worker who asks me almost every single day if what I am wearing is new. I have told her that anything I am wearing that is maternity is new to me (obviously!) and that most everything I wear for the next few months will be because I'm bigger than I ever have been. It doesn't stop her though. I realize it's not the worst thing in the world, but it does drive me crazy. 

Weird symptoms: I have been getting a lot of nosebleeds! Just sneezing is enough to start one, so having allergies this past week has made it happen really frequently. 

I am surprised by: the fact that I don't eat ALL the time. I know, that might change...but, so far, I really haven't eaten as much as I thought I would. Kory commented the other day that he thought I'd be hungry all the time and eating as much as he does, but that really isn't the case. I do snack more often than before, but it really isn't like I imagined. 

Oh Boy!

We went in for my 19 week check-up with my midwife (at 18 weeks because I told her Kory was gone during the 19th week...which he wasn't, I was a month off with my dates! Pregnancy brain strikes again) and she was going to take a look at the baby and see if she could determine the gender.

From my first appointment, the staff had been very clear that this was not a guaranteed thing and it would only happen if the portable ultrasound machine was free that day and, even then, there was no guarantee. I, however, did not listen and got my hopes up anyway, because that is what I do. :)

So as soon as my midwife comes into the room she starts saying, "Now you're not going to paint the nursery or go out and buy a bunch of baby things, right?" She made me promise that I wouldn't before she would even start the ultrasound.

My first ultrasound was with the big machine and the ultrasound tech, so it was in 3-d. This one wasn't, since it was the smaller, portable machine, but I honestly didn't care. The first thing we looked at was the heart-rate which was about 147 I believe, and so I started wondering if it was a girl with that high of a heart-rate.

As soon as we could see the baby, he was bouncing all around. My midwife, Cherie, was in the middle of saying, "Now even if we get a look at baby, we won't know for sure...oh, well, this is a 99%'er." So, I was pretty sure at this point that it was a boy, and then about 2 seconds later little man laid down on his back and threw his legs up in the air to give us a perfect visual. It was pretty easy to confirm that he was a he at this point.

I figured that we would turn the machine off now that we knew the gender, but Cherie spent quite a bit more time letting us watch him do somersaults and twists and turns. She showed us how they measure his growth and was awesome at explaining everything we were seeing. It was really so much fun! I had imagined it would be a very quick look to determine gender and nothing else, but we really got to just watch him play. I asked her if he could feel her movements and she started pushing down on my belly with her wand and we watched as he kind of bounced around. It was pretty funny!

It looks like he is blowing bubbles. (He's laying on his back with his head on the right.)
 

You can see him going into a somersault. His head is on the lower right. Check out that spine!

As we wrapped up the ultrasound, Cherie said to me, "Ok, you can buy ONE blue thing." I told her I probably wouldn't have to as I figured one of the grandmas would take care of that for me :)  She then said they wouldn't change anything at the next appointment unless something fell off in the next 4 weeks, and if that happens, I better come straight back to her because she wants to witness it herself!

We left the appointment and had just a little bit of time to share our news with family before we had to go to a high school youth group event that night. I wanted to be able to talk about it that night so we posted this photo online to let the Facebook world know that Baby Mereness is a HE! :) This all happened on our 3rd wedding anniversary and it just felt like the perfect present to finally be able to call baby a "he" and not just baby. Since we didn't have a name decided on, he quickly became known as Baby Spiderman and Spidey.

Snips and snails and puppy dog tails!

20 Weeks

I have no clue how I did it...but I somehow got a mini-movie going with all the pictures Kory took of my belly today. He always takes a million in a row and it usually means I end up making weird, annoyed faces at him. Today, this is my gift to you...for your viewing pleasure.

Also, I really hate bathroom selfies but they work well to show off the bump. The lighting was weird in the picture above so I am including both this week.

How Far Along: 20 Weeks

Food Comparison: Length of a banana (head to foot) and weight of a cantaloupe (10 oz.)

Weight Gain: 10 pounds 

Maternity Clothes: I just ordered several skirts and dresses online this week that are all maternity. I'm pretty much done with non-maternity pants at this point (except for sweats/yoga/stretchy pants). I could still fit in some of them but they're just too tight and uncomfortable. 

Stretch Marks: No.

Sleep: This has been a rough week for sleep. I'm hoping to get a body pillow this week, which should help with the discomfort. 

Best Moment of this week: Realizing I'm half-way through this pregnancy! It really has gone by pretty quickly and it's hard to believe we're a few months away from meeting our child. 

Miss Anything: When my belly didn't itch so much. Someone told me this week that's supposed to mean my baby will have lots of hair, so this little dude should have a huge afro by this point with this much itchiness! 

Movement: Oh yeah! It's still just little pokes in my lower belly but they're happening more frequently throughout the whole day. I haven't seen any movement from the outside, but I haven't really been looking for it either. 

Food Cravings: Umm...not really. Still eating too many chips and really loving all things carb-filled. Meat doesn't really sound good to me unless it's a hamburger. 

Anything making you queasy or sick: Waiting too long to eat, which is still happening far too often. I'm having such a tough time adjusting to eating breakfast and it always catches up with me when I feel really sick about 8:30 or 9:00 a.m. because I have gone 12+ hours without eating. (No need for lectures--I'm working on it!)

Have you started to show yet: You betcha.

Gender: Boy boy boy. He is a he. It's still fun to say!

Labor signs: Not yet.

Belly button in or out: In and thin. Well, shallow really, but thin rhymed and was more fun to say. 

Wedding ring on or off: On. It got pretty tight this week but I think it was just because I was swelling up from being out in the heat. 

Happy or moody most of the time: Happy :) 

Looking forward to: Picking out things for the nursery. Registering for baby items. Figuring out this kiddo's name. Lots of things to be excited about!