Whoo whee a random update!

Its been a while since I've done a random update post.  Time to share some thoughts and happenings. 

Lovely little AJ is having a birthday in the next three weeks. Whoops! That sure snuck right up. We do small family birthday parties for the nonmajor birthdays. That means I'm not necessarily stressing out...except for the part that we should probably get her a gift or something! I mean, I can handle food and cake and drinks and whatnot, but ahh! A gift! So on one hand, I really want to be intentional and get her something that can be used as an educational tool that also isn't bright pink (or light pink for that matter) or violet or other girly colors. On the other hand, she loves babies and all things babies. There are cheap baby accessories that are all bright pink, but they require no thought and did I say cheap? What to do, what to do... #firstworldproblems

And Christmas lists! I'm on top of that this year. The girls' list is pretty much complete, I know what hubby is getting (gasp! I know!), and well...that's a good start for now. Oh! And for once my list actually has a few items on it instead of just throwing out the usual scarves, mittens, music, etc. I'm so proud of myself.

Let's not even talk about Christmas, though, because once I start, it'll be hard to stop. I just.love.it.

Still loving (looooooving) pumpkin/cinnamon/cream coffee every morning. But seriously, who limits a pregnant lady's intake? The day will come when I won't be limited anymore, and then I'm sure I'll overdose and drive everyone crazy. But I still look forward to it.

Anybody else busy watching Gilmore Girls on Netflix? I'm on season 4. For real. It's embarrassing but I own up to it because it's just such a sweet wonderful show. I so hope and pray that I can be close with my daughters when I am older even though life circumstances are oh so different with us. You know, because I'm not single, wasn't 16 when I had them, and have kind, sweet parents. It can still happen, right?

My back pain is letting up! Just like with A dizzle, right around 27 weeks (I'm 26w1d) it lets up and I can resume normal activity. Well, semi-normal. I mean I do still have an enormous belly that is just hanging out in the way all the time so I can't do a lot of things, but I can move around without grimacing for more than an hour at a time. I like it.

Hubby started working on the fence and has it done enough that we can actually use our backyard (re: river) to it's entirety. It's amazing. Except for this. What in the world do we do back there? We aren't going to get a super expensive swingset and the girls are pretty young for real sports. We have a few balls, bats, and hula hoops. The idea is to move around, not just sit in the sandbox (which is what we have been doing up until now) so HELP! What do your kids do outside?

More pictures...

Those girls are just something, huh. Their personalities are just killing me lately. Audrey's talking is hilarious, and Josie is like my little bff half the time and the terrible three year old that took over my daughter's body the other half. I'm having a hard time getting my mind around the fact that there will be another lovely little lady running around here in no time.

Happy Halloween week! Hopefully I'll have sufficient photos of the girls alllll done up. Sugar high and all.

Baby # 3 - 25 weeks

How far along: 25 weeks

How big is baby: About 1 1/2 lbs and about 13 1/2 inches long (rutabaga)

Weight gain/loss: Not sure, don't want to know

Maternity clothes: Pretty much all the time

Stretch marks: No new ones, thankfully

Sleep: Much better the last two weeks! In fact, hardly any dreams and none that made me wake up in a panic. So thankful for this! I am able to get comfortable and don't feel exhausted all day. Hallelujah.

Diet/Cravings/Aversions: I've been eating less junk, but still probably too much junk. Coffee is my very best friend (I think I say that every week...?)

Exercise:  I've been walking a little more, stretching a little more, and just today I bought a BodyPump dvd that I am super excited about. Hopefully, it will be here within a week and I'll try to ease into it without burning out on it. BodyPump was my favorite when I had a membership at the Y and I know other pregnant women do it all the way up until baby comes. Cannot wait!

Gender: Girl!

Movement: Very often, almost every hour or two. A few times, I've paused and thought, "I haven't felt her all day is everything ok!!" and of course within a minute or two I get a little kick or jab. She's great already, considering my feelings like that.

The belly: Very round, feeling large

What I'm loving: Well, the obvious. The weather is amazing. This Fall has been amazing. I feel like a broken record but I can't stop myself from oohing and ahhing over it and generally just enjoying it. We aren't outside all day every day, but it is pretty fantastic when we are.

What I miss: No double chin, no back pain, but otherwise, things are good. Yay 2nd trimester glory days.

Symptoms: Lower back pain, always thirsty...looking very obviously pregnant

The nursery: Ideas are swirling in my head but none have come into fruition yet. Hopefully soon.

What's different/the same this time: Right now, it all seems very similar. Similar back pain, similar eating habits... yada yada yada

Best moment of the week: Nothing specific, but all the baby kicks have been so wonderful.

Last appointment details: Nothing new, no appointment for 3 more weeks.

Definitely pregnant... I know baby is going through a growth spurt but whew! Click here to see my growing stomach with Baby #3...

and below is a comparison with previous babes.

25 weeks with baby #3 and Audrey (apparently I skipped this week with Josie)

moms group and pumpkin patch (two thumbs up)

I recently joined a moms group that is specifically for moms in our city, instead of being from the general area. Lately, I've been feeling displaced from our community. With two other major cities connected so closely, it's easy to make friends through an organization (primarily our church which is 20 minutes away) and then have to drive 20-40 minutes to see them. More and more, I've been looking for ways to connect with moms that live near us. A quick google and facebook search led to this mom's group so I decided to check it out.

It's quite the organized group with membership fees (pretty minimal), mom's night out events, and organized events for the kids along with smaller weekly playgroups. We probably won't be able to attend every event because man it seems like there are a lot of them (no complaints - it's nice to have the option). We did get to go to one of the organized kids event last week that was so.much.fun.

There is a pumpkin patch just north of our community, probably only five minutes away. We met some of the other families out there to play the games, go on a carriage ride (with Clydesdale horses), visit their mini petting zoo, and pick out a small pumpkin to take home.

But don't let that seemingly simple list fool you. It was so much fun. They had a ton of different games (like 10 varieties of bean bag toss) with playground equipment, mini golf, a mini maze, hay bales set up all over to climb and slide down, covered wagons to play in and around, a huge checkers board, a huge connect four game, and a mini haunted walk for toddlers (not scary, but fun for them to walk through). On top of it all, this farm is right on the river so there were a lot of old trees and it was a perfect fall day with a light breeze and cool but not freezing temps. It was a very pretty setting.

Do you see how wonderful this place was? The girls loved it. I'm sure we'll go back year after year.

Life size Connect Four:

Mini golf:

Covered wagon, which we lovingly referred to as Laura Ingalls Wilder's home:

Sweet tire horses that kind of blew the girls' minds:

On the wagon ride with the huge Clydesdales. Of course the girls had to sit right in the front:

A bunch of toddlers from the moms group:

The girls with their take-home pumpkins (Audrey was so excited to pick one out but it was  hard to find one she could actually pick up):

Josie says

After a bathroom visit:
Me: Did you remember to flush?
Josie: Yes, I did. Are you proud of me?
Me: Yep I am!
Josie: I'm proud of my sister for helping me. She's just a little one.

A few weeks ago, my mom had cataract surgery and stayed with us immediately after. She wore an eye patch the first day and Josie was terrified of it. She was absolutely shocked that Grammy had to wear that and kept begging me to have her take it off. 

It took almost the whole rest of the afternoon for her to even get close to Grammy. She laid down on the floor on the other side of the living room at first, and when we went to the grocery store, she would only hold my hand the whole time. Also, she had to be on the other side of me, not in between us. Grammy was pretty good about not being too hurt. She understood that it was very unknown to the three year old Josie. (Audrey, on the other hand, just poked the patch, laughed, and proceeded to hug and climb all over Grammy.)

Fast forward two weeks. Grammy came back for her other eye's surgery. She spent a little time explaining that she would have another eye patch after her surgery and that it would only be for a little while (I didn't know they had this conversation). After the surgery, we were heading home separately, and Josie told me that she didn't want to see Grammy. We had this conversation in the car:

Me: Why don't you want to see Grammy? (kind of shocked, she looooves Grammy)
Josie: I don't want her to have a patch on her eye. I don't like that. (So, clearly, they talked about it...)
Me: Well, she needs to have the patch on her eye to help it feel better. It's only for today, and then she can take it off just like last time.
Josie: But I don't want it on! 
(We repeated this part at least three more times before I came up with another explanation.)

Me: It's kind of like a bandaid. She has to wear it because she has an owie. But, once it heals, she can take it off.
Josie: (sitting for a while, then quietly, more to herself than to me) One time I had an owie on my knee and I put on a bandaid and it got better.
Me: That's right, Josie! It's just like that! Grammy will have a bandaid on her eye until it is better.
Josie: But I don't like that!
Me: I heard you say you don't like it. Now, we won't say it anymore because Grammy has to wear it. You still love her, right? So we can love her with her eye bandaid.

She didn't whine/cry that she didn't like it anymore and was so much better when we saw Grammy again. I really wanted to record this story because it was amazing watching her think it through and relate it to something in her life. Also, I felt like this was a great example of how we are able to talk things through more and more as she gets older.

There are a lot of great things about growing up.

Baby #3 - 23 weeks

How far along: 23 weeks

How big is baby: Just over a pound and about 11 inches long (large mango)

Weight gain/loss: Not sure, but I'm feeling huge. See comparison pictures below...

Maternity clothes: Pretty much all the time

Stretch marks: No new ones, thankfully.

Sleep: Terrible, terrible dreams. Vivid dreams of hubby leaving me (different circumstances every time), something being wrong with one of the girls, being in serious danger and having to put myself in terrible situations to solve the problem... Thankfully the last few days have been better which  means my sleep is a lot deeper and I'm not exhausted all the time. I so hope we are past the dreams stage because I can't handle being so tired from lack of sleep. It's just been intense. 

Diet/Cravings/Aversions: Sweets have been my friend too much lately. Still loving ice water and coffee is amazing.

Exercise:  I've been doing stretching and flexibility pilates to help with lower back pain that has been pretty bad. It's almost to the exact same week as my pregnancy with Audrey. My hips are stretching and are constantly getting out of alignment and then my back freaks out in response. Thankfully, my dear physical therapist friend (who explained to me why my back gets so sore - makes way more sense now!) has adjusted me a few times and it has helped. The stretching and elbow-to-the-back back rubs help a lot too. Mostly, I just have to take it easy as the day goes on. I can really tell when I've over done it.

Also, for exercise, I have been working in the garden getting it cleaned up. Not alone, thankfully as that would be completely overwhelming! Harvesting that beast (the garden) is almost done and I am quite happy about that. I keep telling myself that while I will have a little baby next year, I won't be pregnant and will have more energy when it is time to harvest it.

Gender: Girl!

Movement: Very often, almost every hour or two. Hubby got to feel movement this week! I'm certain that is the earliest he has felt it. Just this week, she has moved and kicked enough to make me feel like I'm going to pee my pants. We're getting to THAT stage. :)

The belly: Very round, feeling large

What I'm loving: The girls love all things baby and cannot get enough of their new baby cousin, Clara. It's fun watching them love on her knowing that soon it'll be their very own sister they are loving.

What I miss: Life without back pain. Good, deep sleep.

Symptoms: Lower back pain, vivid dreams, always thirsty

The nursery: Ideas are swirling in my head but none have come into fruition yet. Hopefully soon.

What's different/the same this time: With the dreams, I've been more tired. That's about it.

Best moment of the week: Hubby feeling little girl kick. It was fun to see him connect with her so soon.

Last appointment details: Nothing new, no appointment for 5 more weeks.

Baby #3, pregnant with Audrey, pregnant with Josie

Isn't it amazing how much rounder my belly is this time? Looking more like Josie's pregnancy than Audrey's but thankfully I'm feeling a lot less swollen and miserable than I did that first time around.

Well lookie here.

Look what this mama did! A completed, crocheted hat. It's bigger than it's supposed to be and I don't understand how to truly make it smaller. The stitches are not that big... but guess what? It works. :) 

Now to make another one for Josie and one for me (and possibly one for my new niece who is just a wee one week old). 

Look at this girl. She's just gorgeous, right?

Quiet mornings

It's been a quiet couple of days around here. We've had our evening activities, but the days have been filled with pajama clad mornings, sipping coffee, playing dress up, crocheting an entire hat (in just two hours...who am I??), letter learning, coloring, and just generally keeping things casual and light. 

I am still astounded with how well the girls play together. At their current ages (3 and almost 2) they are practically inseparable, Very rarely are they playing independently from each other and very rarely are they truly fighting. I break up small arguments here and there but they often fizzle out on their own without my interfering if I can patiently sit through the screaming for a minute or so. 

Sometimes I feel guilty about these mornings. I feel like I should be doing all the things and that sitting and resting, taking it slow, and enjoying the morning is somehow wrong. 

But then I remember that in just a few months, we'll have another little lady demanding our attention, keeping us on our toes, and throwing us curveballs left and right.

The quiet and slow mornings suddenly don't make me feel guilty when I remember what is coming.

Anybody else been enjoying quiet mornings lately?

Baby #3 - 20 weeks

How far along: 20 weeks

How big is baby: 10 inches from head to heel, about 10 1/2 oz

Weight gain/loss: um... I don't even want to talk about it. Up 10 lbs! My midwife wasn't concerned at all but I was so... time to get serious. 

Maternity clothes: Yes for pants, shirts are hit or miss

Stretch marks: No new ones

Sleep: These last couple of weeks have been great. Hardly any need for naps and I am not waking up nearly as often.

Diet/Cravings/Aversions: Sweets, carbs, junk... so now I'm working on switching that up and hopefully will get some better cravings. I would looove to be done with my aversion to frozen veggies. It's just annoying.

Exercise: Let's do that ... starting now.

Gender:  We just found out that it's a girl! We are THRILLED. We both pictured three girls and now we'll get to see that happen.

Movement: Tons and tons, mostly when I'm sitting down at the end of the day but more and more throughout the day lately. Definitely every day.

The belly: Growing but still a comfortable size.

What I'm loving: That we're having another girl, that the weather is amazing, that I'm feeling great.

What I miss: Nothing major that I can think of.

Symptoms: Food aversions! I'm sick of them.

The nursery: Now that we know the gender, it may be time to start working on that. I've got a few ideas but nothing ready to really work on.

What's different/the same this time: Baby GIRL is a little smaller than the girls were this far along although she's still perfectly healthy.

Best moment of the week: Definitely seeing baby GIRL kicking and curling up during the ultrasound. I love love love seeing the baby even a little. It makes it so much more real... we will have another daughter who will be completely different (with some similarities) than her sisters. It's just so exciting.

Last appointment details: I think I've covered most of it... she was a little shy during the ultrasound, keeping her legs crossed and staying curled up so it was hard to get a few measurements.

Next appointment:  Technically there is one scheduled in four weeks, but I plan on cancelling that one and not going in again until the 28 week appointment with the glucose test. My midwife is fine with it since this isn't my first time around. Obviously if there is anything suspicious I will go in and get it checked out.

Halfway point! The next 20 weeks will hopefully and most likely go by a lot faster than the first 20.