27 Weeks

Eric & I went to Opryland Hotel last night for Dinner & to see Christmas Lights

How far along: 27 weeks

Size of baby: Head of cauliflower

Movement: He is getting stronger & starting to kick harder and harder. I absolutely love looking down at my stomach and seeing it pop out here and there.  My stomach will also roll around really slowly at times. I'm reminded of the miracle of life that is growing inside of me.  What an awesome creator we serve! He designed everything just perfectly!

Sleep:  I sleep better on nights that I do body pump, but the other nights are pretty rough with tossing and turning.  The past few nights I have woken up short of breath b/c I was flat on my back.  Oops again!! I have pillows all around me but still end up on my back.

Cravings: I crave oatmeal when I wake up in the morning. Today, I am craving all of the delicious food that my mom will be making on Christmas day! She is making every single item gluten free for me! (Thanks to Jules GFree AP flour...it's the best!) There's nothing like a mother's home cooking!

Queasy or sick:  Not since 1st trimester! yay!

Symptoms:  Very thankful that I haven't had any heartburn or acid reflux (at least not yet).  If I eat too much mexican or chili or something like that, I have a little indigestion, but nothing bad at all.  

Maternity Clothes:  Maternity leggings, jeans, few shirts.

Belly Button In or Out? Half innie/half outie. :)

Wedding Ring On or Off? On

Miss Anything? I miss being able to work out hard core.  These days, I'll go to the gym to walk on the treadmill, and I start hurting pretty badly that I have to stop and get on the stationary bike.  Most days of the week, I'm lucky to get enough energy to get to the gym. All my energy I had 2nd trimester is slowly decreasing. :(
High of the week: It's Christmas time!! We celebrated Christmas w/ Eric's family last weekend.  Abby, Eric's sister is 36 weeks pregnant with baby girl, Gracyn, and it was fun being pregnant with her. Here we are relaxing on the couch:

I can't wait to meet my newest niece in January! 

Tonight, we head out with my brother and his wife and their twin toddlers to Illinois for Christmas.  I'm so excited to relax, eat some good food, and hang out with my family!

Low of the week: Stress.  I guess with the holidays, finishing up shopping, working, and also getting ready for baby boy, I feel like I can't keep up this year.  But now that Christmas weekend is here, I can relax and not worry about a thing. So thankful!

Happy or Moody most of the time: A little of both this week to be honest.  Jesus and I have had some quality time discussing my emotions...so glad He can give us peace in the midst of chaos. 

Gender: BOY!

Looking Forward to: Christmas (aka Jesus' Birthday). I'm excited to celebrate Christmas with Owen next year and to start our own family traditions with him.

26 Weeks & Nursery Update

I'm 26w4d pregnant and definitely starting to feel it.  Owen is growing faster now and I feel like my stomach keeps getting bigger and bigger.  My body is also starting to hurt more. Car rides are the worst b/c I get so uncomfortable and my back starts hurting.  Can't wait to see my favorite chiropractors (Ryan & Allyson Kathalynas) this weekend for an adjustment.  :)  On a brighter note, I will officially be in my 3rd trimester next week!  I can't believe how fast it has gone by!  Being pregnant in the winter is great but the one negative thing about it is that I feel SO pale.  You're not allowed to tan or get a spray tan during pregnancy, so I guess I'll just have to be okay with being very white this pregnancy.  He's worth it. ;)

Nursery Update:
Owen's nursery is finally BLUE!  I absolutely love going into his room now because the blue color just makes it feel more "real."  My dad and Eric painted Tuesday morning while I was at work, but before they were able to paint, they spent hours taping off the accent wall where the crib will be.  See the pictures below:

Eric getting the lines just right

My dad working on this tedious task

The wall with the chalk lines

Eric (aka Daddy to be) hard at work

The wall all taped off, ready to be painted blue

The next step was to paint the wall blue over the tape (it turned darker after it dried)

My dad painting the rest of the walls blue

 

Here it is! I absolutely LOVE it!

My glider came in!

The fabric has the alphabet on it

A huge thanks to my wonderful husband & father for all their hard work on that accent wall & making sure the lines were straight, etc.  I am very happy that the nursery is starting to come together.  I still need to order a crib, curtains, & a rug, and figure out exactly what I'm going to do on the other walls in the nursery, but I know I still have plenty of time.  January will be a fun filled month of baby showers & nursery planning. Can't wait!

25 Weeks

I'm behind on blogging b/c we've been so busy with the holidays, NYC trip, & being out of town every weekend.  So, I'm catching up with my last 4 weeks of pregnancy pictures:

24 weeks (6 months preggers!)

How far along: 25 weeks

Size of baby: Eggplant

Movement: Owen is very active at certain times of the day; usually mid morning and at night when I lay down for bed. It takes me awhile to go to sleep b/c he kicks so much, but I definitely do not mind one bit! I'm thankful for every single kick.  Last night, Eric felt my stomach slowly moving up & down-it felt like Owen was doing rolls in my stomach. I love seeing the look on Eric's face when he feels Owen kick really hard or when Eric can feel my stomach move up and down.  Priceless!

Sleep:  Starting to toss & turn a lot more. Even though you're not supposed to lay flat on your back, I constantly wake up and find myself in this position. Oops! I can't help it, though!

Cravings: Gummy bears & chocolate.  Don't worry, I eat lots of healthy stuff too ;)

Queasy or sick:  Not since 1st trimester! yay!

Showing Yet:  Oh Yes!

Maternity Clothes:  Yes, for some things, but still able to wear some of my regular shirts.  And after what seemed like forever of finding the perfect maternity jeans, I FINALLY found some jeans that fit me perfectly, and I absolutely love them! 

Belly Button In or Out? As I'm writing this, I just asked Eric what he thought (whether my belly button was in or out), and he said that it's a half innie, half outie. lol

Wedding Ring On or Off? On

Miss Anything? Sushi.
High of the week: NYC Trip! Another high was Eric talking to my belly on Saturday morning.  He said, "It's hard to imagine I can love someone so much who I haven't even met yet."  He's so right...I can't get over how much I already love this baby boy. 

Low of the week: Sciatic nerve pain started a few days ago, and it seems to continue off & on. Baby Owen is so worth it, but I'm praying it doesn't last the rest of the pregnancy.  If anyone has any relief tips, I'd love to hear them! (I'm thinking I will start prenatal yoga after the new year (for more reasons than one), and maybe that will help too). 

Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy most of the time, but with the busyness of being gone every weekend & trying to get things ready for baby, I definitely have my emotional times. 

Gender: BOY!

Looking Forward to: Painting Owen's nursery blue! (Which will hopefully happen this week)  We haven't really done anything to his nursery besides paint the walls white, but I'm hoping to get a lot done in January, after the holidays.  
**Also, if anyone has any recommendations for a nice, inexpensive white crib (does not have to convert to toddler bed), I would love your help!  I found this crib (see below) that I've been thinking about buying, but just not sure about it.  I know it's a 4 in 1 crib, but I can't find one that's not.  Let me know your thoughts!

I'll end this post with another fun highlight of the week.  My sweet friend, Charlotte, let me borrow her Belly Buds.  I put them on my stomach for the 1st time last night and turned on some classical music on Pandora.  Owen started kicking immediately.  He kept kicking over and over again exactly where the headphones were stuck on my belly.  I kept wondering if by him kicking meant he liked or disliked the music, but everything I read online seemed to think that by kicking, the baby likes the music. I sure hope so! It sure was funny to feel him go to town the whole time the music was playing to my womb. 

1st Time Trying Out Belly Buds