19 Weeks 1 Day

Just a quick update. Today I’m 30. Wow. I’m kind of sad to be out of my 20s, honestly. But eh, time flies by, what can you do? As they say, getting older sure beats the alternative. 😉

I have been eyeing the 10 day forecast just waiting for it to say rain. It almost always rains on my birthday (gotta love March, right?!) but it kept looking nice and warm!! It sprinkled for only a few minutes this morning. Otherwise it was a gorgeous sunny day. I took my babies for a walk at the track and to run a few errands, then we came home and my parents came by with my brother A for a bit. I made turtle brownies and a special chicken salad and a quick skillet dinner. 🙂 DH surprised me with the 20 gallon fish tank that I’ve been eyeing for our huge goldfish. We still have to get more gravel and add more water but we did get him moved over from his 5 gallon tank. I’m so glad because he can finally swim more!! He’s really very large for a goldfish. So now I have a betta in my bedroom, a betta in my living room and a 20 gallon tank with the goldfish. It’s getting out of hand guys… And let’s not forget I now have a 5 gallon tank just begging for another fish … Trying to talk myself into giving that tank away. I don’t have anymore room! 😂

Living the crowded life in his small tank

All the plants are real. I have air plants in the shell vases. There are also moss balls in the tank for better water quality.

I’m feeling baby less this week. I think he’s turned towards my back again. I really love his little flips and flops and hope he gets where I can feel him more again.

I’ve gained 10lbs now and I’m craving frozen coffee, salad and sweets. I keep making these amazing salads and I’m just…. I could eat that every day for supper. Unfortunately, the rest of my family doesn’t agree. 😂

But Zane seems to like it!

Zane’s version of salad currently.

A kid sized salad

Excuse the mess in the background but…. 😋

Who says salad should be boring? I add avocado, green/red/yellow/orange peppers, carrots, beets, chicken, hard boiled egg, cheese… Whatever we have on hand! 
I got a new pack of kt tape in the mail and I tried a new way of taping my belly. This pattern is definitely the best support so far and I had very little SPD pain today!! I need to do a whole separate post on this once I get better at it. 

I think that’s it guys… Aside from being a little more tired and a little more breathless throughout the day, I’m feeling pretty much awesome. I’m so happy! This is definitely the best phase of pregnancy for me. 

Dear God, thank You for 30 years on this earth and for my beautiful family. Thank You for all the blessings You’ve given me over the years. Please watch over my loved ones and protect each one. In Jesus’ name, amen. 

18 Weeks 4 Days And Other Things

This week has been so full and busy! Amidst the prep for the joint bridal shower that my sisters and I threw for our sister and sister-in-law, we also had our anatomy scan and 18 week checkup. The anatomy scan was great and I can’t say enough how awesome the sonographer was. She really took her time and explained everything to us. Sometimes when people hear that this is our 4th baby, they just assume we know everything, but actually there’s a lot that is checked on the anatomy scan that I didn’t know about! She walked us through each detail and gave us some really great pics. She also confirmed that baby is absolutely still w boy. Or, as the Dr put it, “nothing fell off.” 😂

Thankfully DH was able to leave work early and go with me, which was a treat for both of us. My sisters babysat so we even crammed in a little date. 😉 Our appointment was at 1pm for the ultrasound. It lasted about 40 minutes. Then we headed to the cafeteria for lunch before our 2:45pm checkup. We literally spent 6 minutes waiting for and talking to the Dr, there just wasn’t much to say. She didn’t have the ultrasound report back but she did clear me to fly so we can book our vacation. 🙂 

After that, we hit up several stores looking for bikes for Tru and Levi. It was Levi’s birthday that day and we really wanted to get him a big boy bike. It wouldn’t be any fun for him to ride alone, so we bought Tru one too. Levi also got sunglasses and we got all the boys lifejackets to wear at the beach if that’s where we end up vacationing. Then we grabbed some quick supper at steak and shake so we could get home to eat ice cream cake with Levi for his birthday. 🙂 

The bridal shower was Saturday and it went amazingly well. The venue we booked was gorgeous and took very little decorating to get it ready for the party. The games were hilarious, particularly watching the girls get dressed in toilet paper dresses. They received so many awesome gifts as well. 😉 

So, today I had planned to go to church and then take the boys to ride their bikes at the track. Unfortunately, we pulled into church and I heard that all too familiar sound of retching. I got the van door opened as fast as I could and grabbed Levi out just in time to save a huge mess on the carpet. He proceeded to throw up 3 times in a few minutes, so needless to say, we sent a friend inside to let DH know we couldn’t stay. (He gets there early to set up and I bring the kids later.) I can’t figure where Levi got sick from since I purposely haven’t taken them anywhere for the last several days in an effort to avoid them getting sick when I was trying to throw the shower. (It’s been an hour and no more barf. 🙏🤞) Yesterday my BIL brought his kids over to play while his wife and I were at the shower but their kids weren’t sick, so…. Idk. Maybe Levi just ate something this morning that didn’t agree with him. Tru and Levi were so disappointed to change our plans of bike riding, so I’m just waiting in town for a bit to see if any more barf happens or if we can still go. 

In pregnancy related news, the day after my last post were I said I couldn’t feel the baby kicking, he literally started giving me kicks at 17+2!! I’ve felt him every day since. (He’s actually kicking around right now.) Granted, it’s very light and I have to really pay attention, but I do feel some light taps and flops and flutters. He must have just been facing my back before. Also, according to our ultrasound he only weights 9oz, so he’s still quite tiny! I think he measured a day or two behind but I doubt my drs will change my due date. Cervix was 3.8cm. 

I’ve been experiencing some swelling to the point that my left ankle has a bruise in a ring around it from my socks yesterday. It makes it hard to judge my weight gain when I have swelling some days but not others. I think I’m up around 10-11lbs. Definitely trying to keep up with at least a few walks a week pushing the stroller with Zane. Getting workouts in at home is harder just due to the kids being around all the time. My pelvic pain is definitely still very present but I’ve been using kensio tape on my lower belly to lift and support. It’s amazing!! 

Other than that, I feel really good!! A tad more breathless than usual and maybe a tad more tired, but I’m definitely in the honeymoon phase of pregnancy! I don’t feel sick or queasy often at all and seldom for more than a few minutes at a time. Feeling the baby is just amazing and I’m definitely enjoying this trimester a lot more. 🙂 

Dear God, thank You for a wonderful week and for helping me feel so great. Thank You for a good ultrasound and the opportunity to bond with this sweet baby through kicks and his sweet pictures. Please help everything to keep going well. In Jesus’ name, amen. 

18 weeks 3 days

Antinuclear Antibodies, ANA

I don’t have this myself but I know someone who does. I’d like to hear about your experience if you have it and what type of treatment you do, if any. Particularly how it has impacted pregnancy for you. If you have any knowledge to impart, I’m all ears!! Thanks in advance. 🙂 

Happy 4th Birthday, Levi!

Oh Levi. How is it possible this kid is already turning 4 tomorrow?? How??? He’s been telling everyone “I’m turning 4 in March”. I don’t even know how he knows that because I don’t recall telling him that but this kid remembers darn near everything. Tomorrow we are planning to celebrate with chocolate cupcakes with chocolate icing and something about Mickey mouse on top. Hopefully I can find what he’s looking for! 😉 He wants a bike really bad, so I hope to find him one tomorrow! (Not like I’m rushing around at the last minute or anything. 🙄)
Currently Levi is 39lbs, 41.75″ tall and growing like a weed! He’s super goofy and laughs all the time. He likes to make other people laugh too. He likes to sing with Mommy and play guitar, drums or keyboard with Daddy. He’s the one kid I can count on to hug me multiple times a day for no reason at all other than he loves me and has a high desire for affection. He’s constantly telling everyone in our family “I love you!”, including the dog. 
Levi’s artistic abilities have started to emerge rapidly the last couple months. He’s drawing real little people now with facial expressions and hair and glasses and everything. A few months ago I couldn’t decipher his scribbles but now it’s a clear picture. 😊 He loves to color but mostly to draw his own pictures (and sometimes color on his body… But we won’t talk about that). 

I can count on this boy to clean up and make his bed. Some days it takes some bribery and a lot of reminding and other days he’s on the job and getting it done faster than I can blink. It really just depends. One thing is for sure, Levi can be really really stubborn when he wants to be. But he’s also so soft hearted that he just can’t stay mad for long. He’d rather be having fun and back to playing, or watching his favorite shows which definitely do not include Sesame Street, for some reason. He loves to laugh when Caillou comes on and giggle while he asks me if I like that show because Levi knows I literally cannot stand it at all! (Caillou is some next level kind of annoying, let me tell you! But that’s another story.) 

Play dough, slime, markers, mud, finger paint… If it’s messy, Levi loves it. He plays hard and he sleeps hard. As long as Tru let’s him go to sleep at night, he’s usually out right away. But he’s also an early riser because he’s got things to do!! Naps are a thing of the past and aside from a rare nap once or twice a month, most days he just takes a quiet time in his room for a bit and colors or plays something quiet. Even though it’s not sleeping, his body definitely needs the rest period. Lately he’s been coming into our room once a night and snuggles for a few minutes and then goes back to bed. We asked him why and he said “I’m not cozy enough in my room.” I’m not sure what that means exactly but as long as he wants to climb in bed and snuggle for a few minutes, I’m ok with that. 😉 

Levi is a good eater almost all the time. There are days he swears he cannot stand whatever food it is that he positively loved just last week, but most days I can count on him to eat 3 square meals and at least 5,000 snacks. Sometimes there is a snack before I get a chance to get their breakfast! Usually breakfast is cereal or oatmeal followed by a snack about an hour later. Then lunch, which is usually a pb and honey sandwich (WHOLE, no halves for this boy) and maybe some fruit, or leftovers from supper, and then a snack a little later. Without fail, these boys are always trying to get a snack while I make supper. I try to hold them off 5 MORE MINUTES and then after supper they have another snack or two before bedtime. I can’t complain though. They snack pretty healthy. Yogurt, apples, bananas, cutie oranges, cheese, tortillas (🤢), carrots, raisins, lunchmeat… Basically whatever they can reach in the fridge. 😜 

Preschool has been pretty much the most exciting thing ever this year and even though we don’t get to do it every day right now, Levi begs and begs to do his school work. He’s gotten so much better at tracing the letters and numbers just in the last few months! At the beginning of the school year it was a painstaking process to make a letter or number but now he’s really good at it. He definitely knows all his colors well and lots of shapes. Categorizing (what would you wear in the winter, etc) and sequencing are some new things we are working on that he enjoys. 🙂 

I’m so thankful for a beautiful and fun year with my second little boy. He’s a pleasure to be around and I wouldn’t trade his hugs and “love you, mommy” for anything in the world! I love watching him grow and learn and bless us with his sweet and gentle personality. I love my Levi! 💙 
Dear God, thank You for a beautiful year with a beautiful boy. Please help us to raise him well and protect his sweet spirit and gentle qualities while also helping him grow in all his strengths. Please bless and protect Levi all throughout his life. Thank You for him in our lives. In Jesus’ name, amen. 

17 Weeks 1 Day

The question of the week is why do I not feel any baby movement yet?? I realize that I am still within the normal window of time to start feeling movement but I felt all my other babies weeks earlier than this. Even Levi, who had an anterior placenta. I am pretty sure I felt some flutters with this baby around week 15 but I’m definitely not feeling anything now. I’ve tried laying still and quiet and just focusing and I’ve tried listening with the doppler to see if I hear movement. Granted, I’m heavier this time around and listening with the doppler isn’t hugely helpful with hearing kicks. All I know is I am glad the anatomy scan is scheduled for next week and I hope I’ll see lots of kicks then. Hopefully I’ll start feeling movement soon! It’s seriously the best part of pregnancy and I feel so anxious to start feeling it. 

On to some highlights:

• One thing that I’m very happy about is that the morning sickness is FINALLY gone! I still get occasional surges of queasiness but nothing at all like before. I woke up this morning feeling no nausea and just felt a rush of thankfulness to be done with that part of pregnancy. 
• I’m feeling some Braxton Hicks lately which is not at all unusual for me by now. 
• I can’t believe I am already having SPD pain. It seems this usually starts a lot later on for me. Some days it’s not too bad and then other days I’m hobbling around. I think it primarily flairs up from how I sleep. If I could just figure out how I’m sleeping that is causing it to hurt worse….
• I’m still trying to get back on track with exercise. Some days I use my recumbent bike and some days I walk. Now that it’s getting warmer I’m enjoying taking the boys to walk the track. Zane is so cute riding along in the stroller smiling at everyone. I also downloaded some new yoga apps for pregnancy and I want to do that as much the SPD will allow. It feels good to be getting more active again! 🙂 
• And a random tidbit, I can feel my uterus right below my belly button. My belly is definitely rounding out and taking on more of the basketball shape. I’m still wearing my regular clothes except for my one pair of maternity jeggings I bought several weeks ago. I need to pull out my maternity shirts though as my regular shirts are getting short.
• I’ve gained almost 9 whole pounds already. 😩 Not thrilled about that but it is what it is. I’ve also gone up a cup size and have been super sore up top the last couple weeks. They feel so heavy and solid. It’s crazy how my body knows what to do and is going through all the changes like an old pro. 
• Still having days were I’m completely exhausted and can fall asleep at the drop of a hat. Hopefully my energy level will improve a bit soon. I have so much to do around here now that the weather is getting better!

Sorry it’s blurry…

Dear God, I’d just love to feel this little baby moving around in there soon. Thank You for his beautiful little life. Please protect him and help him be strong and healthy. In Jesus’ name, amen. 

16 Weeks Pregnant

I missed my update last week. The week was so crazy and just flew by in a whirl of wedding prep for my brother’s wedding and then post-wedding recovery. I actually wasn’t supposed to be very involved in the process, aside from being a bridesmaid. But in the end they were short a groomsman and I had pre-volunteered myself for kitchen duty in the event that a groomsman couldn’t be there. Then I somehow volunteered myself to make 100 cupcakes (my sister L came and helped me, thank goodness!) when the woman we asked to do them didn’t have time. As I was setting up the food ONE HOUR BEFORE THE CEREMONY, I discovered that due to an accidental lack of communication, the food my mom and sisters had prepped for the 70+ guests HADN’T BEEN COOKED YET!! Not only that, but some of the meat was still frozen. 😱😬 I’d already spent the morning making 15 cups of rice in 3 seperate batches and was just pouring the food into the warming pans. Yikes!!! So I ended up cooking shishkabob on the stove top in 2 batches in a stock pot, and my trusty instant pot cooked the 3rd batch. Everything finished at 3:27pm, at which point I grabbed my kids and ran from the kitchen to the sanctuary in time to sit down for the 3:30 wedding. Shew!!! Thankfully my older sister was able to wrestle Zane through the ceremony so I was free to run to the kitchen to stir the food in the warmers. All of my younger sisters made gorgeous bridesmaids and 2 of my younger brothers were handsome groomsmen. ❤️❤️❤️❤️ My brother and his wife had a beautiful little wedding and I’m so glad it’s over and we all pulled together and pulled it off for them. So thankful!! 

Anyway, the pregnancy news is why you’re here so…. I’ve had a few rough days of nausea and a few that are much MUCH better. Restless legs are definitely a daily/nightly occurrence now but thanks to my friend J for sending me some magnesium spray a couple months ago, I’m actually able to get relief quickly! So, the magnesium is actually good for a lot of things, including insomnia and morning sickness. My sickness has been too powerful to be combatted by basically anything, but a few sprays of magnesium on my legs and low back at night and I’m able to calm the burning/crawling feeling in my legs and get some sleep!! In the past I’ve taken magnesium in pill or powder form, but when I’m struggling to get those options down, the spray is absolutely amazing to have! 

I’m definitely having some more noticeable round ligament pain this week and a weird pulling pain in my right thigh/groin area. But since baby is growing very rapidly, that’s to be expected. I really just can’t wait to start feeling movement regularly! I’ve definitely felt a few flutters and felt a soft flopping feeling when I was laying in bed one night at 15+1. But no really obvious movement yet. I thought I’d feel baby soon since I have a fundal placenta this time, but nope. 

And, I think that’s about it! My sister is getting married next month and at the advice of my hematologist, she has to get a pre-ttc clotting panel done next week. Hopefully she is good to go and doesn’t have any clotting disorders. Keep her in your prayers for good results!! It’s interesting though… Finding out that I had clotting issues was actually an answer to my prayers! I hoped something would come up that would be easily treatable and I could finally carry a pregnancy. Of course for my sister, finding out she has to take shots during pregnancy would be devastating! Crazy how life works sometimes. 

Dear God, please help S to get good results at her dr appointment and to have healthy successful pregnancies in the future. Please continue to bless me and this baby in our pregnancy journey. Help us to stay safe and healthy. In Jesus’ name, amen. 

15 weeks 6 days

Edited to add: I forgot to say that I’m up 7lbs and I’m so happy that I started doing light workouts again. Starting slow and easy on the recumbent bike and doing squats. Hoping to add more stuff in as I build back up to working out again.