32 Week 3Ds!

Here is little Adam at 32 weeks... estimated 4.4 lbs, and according to Crystal, our ultrasound tech, his head is REALLY low, and he is in the perfect position for delivery! yay!

Here is Anna Rae at 32 weeks... Something tells me they are going to look just alike! :)

And here I am at 32 weeks!

The remainder of the doctor visit yesterday went pretty uneventful.  I did talk to the doctor about my crazy back labor contractions I had last Friday morning.  They came every 10 minutes for an hour straight, and were pretty painful.  I took a hot shower and ate some breakfast, and they eventually went away.  Thank goodness!  The doctor said he could contract all he wanted after 36 weeks! 

31 Weeks!

Here we are... counting down the weeks and days instead of months looking forward to meeting our precious little boy!  Recently I find myself coming to the realization I'm having a boy and freaking out a little.  I know at first it won't be much different from Anna Rae, but it seems I know nothing about "boy" stuff and I feel so unprepared.  I gravitate to girly items in a store, want to watch all the girly movies and shows on tv, and am partial to girl clothes.  Although I know Johnathan will make sure his son is "all boy," I want to be a part of that too.  The "boy" stuff I like is NASCAR, football, basketball, fishing, and a big truck... and that's about it.  But, then I started to think... Anna Rae plays in the dirt, just like a boy would, and probably gets just as dirty and loves it.  

In an online Q&A regarding this same matter, I read answers from mothers with boys.  Of course most of their advice was geared towards how to not get peed on, but in all honesty I could care less about the pee.  I read one that calmed my fears... "When he gets big enough for his boy-ness to matter, you will already be so intimately familiar with him, the person, that the rest will come naturally. Just be open to falling in love with your baby and discovering who he is."  I need to remember that I bonded the same with Anna Rae, and it wasn't just because I was a girl too, but as she developed a personality we developed a relationship, and it seems so natural now.  I know it will be the same with Adam.  

I'm also getting a little nervous about just caring for a newborn again.  I know some moms who think it will be easier the second time around because they've done it before, and in some respects I do feel that way.  But you also forget so easily... the labor and birth, the long nights and little sleep, breastfeeding fears, bouts of non stop crying and spitting up... and then there is a new element... potentially waking up Anna Rae in the middle of the night with his crying, so now we are having to comfort two children.  Oh, and I can't forget we have TWO dogs now, which in the grand scheme of things don't make much of a difference, but it all seems very overwhelming.  I'm sure all moms go through this, and now that I've written all this down I am even more glad that we haven't started building our house yet!  Ha! 

So there it is Adam.  My fears may seem overwhelming, but the thought of having you in our lives is such an unbelievable joy and a gift and I can't wait!  This is what life, and family, is all about!   

30 Weeks and A Little Firecracker is Growing Up

My little cucumber is moving right along... and moving all the time!  Today was our 30 week appointment, and everything is great.  I was curious to find out if he was still breach, although with all the kicks to my right side I figured he had moved.  And he has... the doctor pointed out to me where all of his body parts were... head was down, body to the left, and arms and legs to the right, which would explain all the movement happening over there.  I asked about all the cramping in my lower abdomen and sudden bouts of nausea, and of course everything is normal and I've got to push through it for at least another 10 weeks.  I've also already started feeling my pelvic bones moving, which really just feels like they are extremely sore.  The doctor checked today to see if I was dilated or effaced any, and no progress yet.  I was actually a little surprised to see them checking already, but of course didn't ask why.

Although I'm having some aches and pains, which is pretty typical at this point in my pregnancy, I am enjoying the last few weeks of my pregnancy, and savoring each moment.  I can't wait to meet my sweet baby boy, watch him develop a personality, and especially watch he and Anna Rae develop a relationship. 

And speaking of Anna Rae... this blog post is two fold... She turned 2 yesterday and we had a great party with the family.  Although it had been raining for the past 40 days it seemed, it rained a little on and off in the morning, but ended up being a beautiful 4th of July.  We had her party at my mom's house, and afterward we took her swimming... just me, Johnathan, and his mom and John.  It was nice, quiet, relaxing, and Anna Rae had a great time!  We got her a puddle jumper, and she loves it!  It gives her a ton of independence in the pool, and we are teaching her how to swim and she's doing a great job!  After the pool we all three took a short nap, ate pizza for dinner, then went to the Harness Track in Pinehurst to watch the fireworks... which of course Johnathan told her was all for her birthday!!!  She was a little scared when they first started, because of course she doesn't remember watching them there last year.  But once we reassured her that it was fun and pretty, and the fireworks weren't going to get in her eyes, nose, or mouth, I think she had a good time.  She told us afterward that she liked them.  Hopefully next year the weather and fireworks will be just as good!!!

Here are a couple pictures from her party... and me at 30 weeks! 

Home Stretch and In the Clear!

I've never seen an acorn squash before, but that's how big Adam is this week!  He kicks like a champ, and I can feel him moving around in there almost all the time.  I love that, if this is my last pregnancy, I'm able to feel him so much.  I'm cherishing these last few weeks as much as I can.

And speaking of cherishing pregnancy, it always has its ups and downs.  Feeling him move is the greatest high, but my aches and pains this time around have been much worse.  I get stitch cramps in my lower abdomen, like those you might get after running a few miles, and the braxton hicks contractions seem much stronger with Adam.  I talked to the doctor about it last week, and she explained that since all my muscles and bones down there have already moved and stretched once, when it happens a second time it's more painful.  I would have thought the opposite, but what do I know?!?  I've also been nauseous on and off the last couple of days, and I read that hormone levels tend to pick back up during the final trimester, just as it did in the first, which for some women can bring on nausea.  GREAT.

Last week's doctor's appointment was the glucose testing to find out if I had gestational diabetes and/or low iron.  An hour after drinking the nasty stuff I describe as syrupy sunkist, I tested negative for diabetes and my iron was perfect!  I have to say I was a little worried this time because I have been eating a ton of sweets during this pregnancy.  Hopefully that craving will deminish after Adam is born or I'm in trouble!

Now the doctor appointments will be every two weeks.  Since every doctor's appointment seems like one step closer to meeting Adam, I am so excited about my appointments being closer together.

In other news, we are all moved in and settled into the house we are renting from my parents.  I have to admit I'm enjoying it more than I thought I would, and Johnathan is too.  Now, we are getting on track to finish the year out, enjoy little Adam and the holidays, and hopefully by next summer we will be ready to start building our dream house!

And last, but not least, Johnathan and I celebrated our 7 year anniversary yesterday!  We went to Ironwood for dinner, which is sort of a staple for us.  We had many date nights there when we were dating, Johnathan got a speeding ticket on the way there for dinner one of those date nights, and we had our rehearsal dinner there the night before our wedding.  Great food, and a nice, quiet atmosphere, which these days are priceless!  After dinner we tried a somewhat new place in town, Di'lishi Frozen Yogurt Bar, for the first time.  That was quite a unique experience, the yogurt was great, but the total chaos at the yogurt machines was not what I invisioned.  Maybe they should hire another employee to stand guard of the yogurt and control the madness! ;)

27 Weeks!

27 weeks, and an almost 2 year old!!! :) 

Random Little Cabbage Hiccups

Well, I've almost made it through the second trimester, and I just started thinking about how fast this pregnancy has gone.  Here are a few little random thoughts about little Adam in my belly...
- He kicks, almost constantly
- He had the hiccups for the first time this week, and they lasted a pretty long time
- Everyone thinks he's going to be a BIG boy, based on the size of me now, and aren't afraid to tell me how BIG I am... not a fan
- Anna Rae loves to rest her head on my belly
- I'm still going to the gym about 3 times a week, and it makes me feel so good
- We closed on our old house today! YAY!  What a headache, but we are ready to move on to bigger and better things! :)

Moving Little Grapefruit Boy!

We had baby Adam's 23 week appointment today, and he is doing great!  His heartbeat was a strong 150, and he's moving around like crazy!  Basically, if I'm still, he's moving.  My only concern today was that I've already started having Braxton Hicks contractions.  I wrote about having contractions at 36 weeks with Anna Rae, and I'm almost certain I wasn't having Braxton Hicks this early in my pregnancy with her.  I talked to the doctor about it and she reassured me that since it's my second child everything will happen a little sooner, and since I know what it feels like, I can zone in on it more than I did with Anna Rae.

I hate to keep comparing pregnancies, because Adam's is just as unique and special as Anna Rae's was, but reading back at 23 weeks with her I can't believe I was able to still fit in a pair of my regular jeans!  Maybe it's because they are more comfortable, but I started wearing maternity pants a while ago! haha  There is no way I could get my belly in a pair of my regular jeans right now. 

Well, the baby's moving, and so are we!!!  We FINALLY sold our house, and are scheduled to close on June 3rd!  Although it's a little bittersweet because that was the first house we ever bought, and share some good memories in that house, I'm so excited about the future!  We are going to temporarily live in my mom's second house until we start BUILDING!  I've already picked out the house, made changes to the plans, and can't wait to move into our dream house.  But, we've decided to take one thing at a time, and are not going to start building until I've had Adam.  Still, we are one step closer!!!