35 Weeks Pregnant

How far along? 35 weeks - only 35 more days until my due date!
Total weight gain/loss: I'm guessing I'm hovering somewhere between 20 and 25 pounds at this point
Maternity clothes? All of the time

Stretch marks? None yet
Symptoms: I think I've been over doing it this week because I'm just so achy and sore in the evenings. But I can't seem to just sit still either, so it's my own madness that's putting me in this position. 

Sleep: Not terrible, but not great either.

Best moment this week: My little girl turning TWO! And now she tells me she's a big girl and not a baby.
Have you told family and friends: Yep!

Miss anything? Not too much.
Movement: Crazy movements this week - we were watching the baby shift its big butt from side to side the other night. It's hilarious to see how misshapen my belly can get from the baby moving.
Food cravings: No real cravings this week.

Anything making you queasy or sick: None.
Have you started to show yet: Yep
Baby is a: surprise!
Belly Button in or out? Still in

Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy and tired
Looking forward to: Easter! The girls are so excited to wear their Easter clothes and shoes and even more excited about the Easter Bunny visiting. 

I've got my next appointment on Wednesday and will have my Group B Strep test done then, which is always fun. Then I move to weekly appointments. I got our infant car seat down the other day and washed the cover and wiped everything down. Now we just need to install the base in Sexy Flexy, pack the hospital bag (I'll probably do that closer to 38 weeks), and pick up some newborn diapers. Oh and I keep meaning to make the girls mini Boppys so they can use them with their babies. I better get on that so they can have them before the baby arrives. I got them both the most adorable Big Sister shirts to wear to the hospital when the baby is born. Stasa is still in denial that there's a possibility we'll have a boy. We had a talk about that during dinner this week and I told her that if we have a boy we'll name him Thomas and she looked at me and said "NO. Mommy we don't need another Daddy. We'll name him Ariel." Which is also what she wants us to name the baby if it's a girl. 

And speaking of that, we're still undecided on a girl name. We've had our boy name (Thomas Samuel) set since we were pregnant with Stasa, but we can't seem to agree on a girl name. I sent Tom my top three picks for him to think over and hopefully we can choose one we both like (note: this is not a call for suggestions - we don't need more names to confuse the matter). 

Afraid of the dark

All of a sudden Lexi seems to have become afraid of the dark. She transitioned to her big girl room and bed without any problems a few months ago and had been sleeping with a faint night light. Then all of a sudden she started flipping her light switch on after we left her room. We would go in and turn off the light and tell her to go to sleep and she would immediately turn it back on as soon as the door was closed.

At first we through it was a game she was playing and kept going in every time and turning off the light. Eventually she started telling us it was "too dark." So now we leave one of her smaller lamps on when we say goodnight and she still cries. Sometimes for an hour. And that's with us going in there at intervals to soothe her. I hold her sobbing body until she calms down and tell her to try closing her eyes. I mean, one look at her and you can see how completely exhausted she is. Her answer? "No, too dark, mommy." And she keeps insisting that it's too dark when she closes her eyes or if the lights are off.

I've been doing some light research/reading about this and some sources say to make sure the lights stay off and comfort the child in the dark so they know it's okay. Honestly I don't think she would calm down at all if the lights were off. We've tried a few different night lights and none seem to make a difference. I'm wondering if we should try to find a portable or handheld light for her. Maybe something like that would give off enough light so she wouldn't need the brighter lamp on. Or maybe one of those Pillow Pet Dream Lites or other light up thing that displays light patterns on the ceiling.

Any other suggestions?

And now she's two

I debated over what theme to have for Lexi's birthday party and finally settled on a Yo Gabba Birthday. After buying a few decorations, tablecloths, and balloons in the theme, we were pretty set. I made two cakes instead of cupcakes because I figured it would be easier to decorate just two cakes instead of a couple dozen cupcakes. I think the cakes came out okay. It was my first time using fondant and I should have put the light blue part on the bottom of Toodee's face, but oh well. Lexi loved them both.





The girls loved the large scene setter decoration with the Yo Gabba Gabba characters, although Tom and I thought it was weird that all of them were on there except Foofa. I kept the decorations with the thought of putting them in the playroom or in the girls' rooms for a little bit. I made the little food signs to add a bit more Gabba flare to the tables. We had Foofa's Fruit, Brobee's Veggies, Plex's Piggies, Muno's Meatballs, and Toodee's Tots. Tom and his mom did a lot of cooking for the party and made a ton of fried wings, meatballs, potato salad, and pigs in blankets (or as I call them, heart attacks on a stick).

The birthday girl had a blast and got to wear a new Yo Gabba Gabba outfit for the party.


She actually ate a plate of food and not just all junk. And then happily dug into her cake.


Look at that big girl. Ankles crossed and using a fork like a little lady. How did she grow up so fast??? After everyone left, she was perfectly happy playing with the many balloons that we got for the party.


And on her actual birthday, the big girl woke up so happy and became even more excited when she realized it was STILL her birthday. Three days of birthday. Who wouldn't love that?


At two years old Lexi is smart, funny, sassy, silly, cuddly, loving, and a ball of energy and laughs. She's so much more cautious than Stasa ever was and prefers to slide down the stairs on her butt rather than walk. Although she may also prefer that method because it's much faster than walking. LOL She craves cuddles in the morning and I hope that doesn't change anytime soon because I love them as much as she does. And on the eve of turning two she declared that she needed to go potty, dropped her pants, pulled off her diaper, climbed on the potty, and actually went! Even Stasa came in and cheered. Keep it up, big girl!

Confessions

Another blogger I follow recently posted a list of mama confessions and I started listing mine in a comment to the post and realized I had quite a few and should just share them here, so here we go.

My girls don't always get bathed when they should, especially during the winter because we get so few hours with them during the week I opt to let them play with us a little longer instead of taking a bath. So, sometimes we start our weekend mornings off with bath time or I decide to throw them in the shower with me. Then there are nights when I know they need a bath, but I just don't feel like spending that much time cleaning them, so they get a quick 2 minute shower in their tub. And then there are nights when we just wash them down with a wipe and write an I.O.U. to the rest of their body. Thankfully I'm not nearly as lazy in the summer (maybe it's more sunlight?) so they actually get bathed every night then.

When Tom or I have to run an errand, we'd both prefer to go it alone, because let's be honest it's just so much easier to run in and out of a store without having to stop, buckle in a kid, then unbuckle a kid, wait for their little legs to walk all the way to the store and then through the store and on and on. Triple that if you have to go to more than one store to finish all of the erranding. Even with all of that hassle, we often choose to take one or both kids so the one staying at home can have quiet home time, which can be so.much.better than quiet store time sometimes. Think of everything you can do at home alone. You can pee. ALONE. Watch 30 minutes of your own television show. ALONE. Read. An actual book and not one that contains a moral learned from something Brother and Sister Bear have done.

I often have to sneak away and lock my bedroom door just so I can take a shower alone. Both of my girls think that shower or bath time is time for EVERYONE to join in and will show up butt naked ready to climb in if I leave the door unlocked. Sorry, kids, mama likes to lather rinse and repeat in silence.

I've been known to hide in the kitchen or another room so I can eat a piece of candy or chocolate without the kids knowing. Hell, really I should eat all meals and snacks in hiding because they inevitably want whatever it is that I'm having, even if they have a bowl of the exact same food. And if I want ice cream or something really special I just wait until the kids are in bed.

I've been known to tell Stasa that certain movies are broken and need to be sent back to the store to be fixed just so she doesn't melt down when I say we can't watch it. And mostly because I really really really can't watch The Little Mermaid. Again. It's like the only movie she ever wants to watch and we don't even watch movies all that often, but jeez, have some diversity. Which is why we've stopped watching The Fresh Beat Band - 90% of their songs are repeats on every episode. Lazy.

There are many many more confessions. Like how we sometimes have cereal for dinner because I can't think of a thing to eat and have no energy to get out more than a bowl, spoon, cereal, and milk.

34 Weeks Pregnant

How far along? 34 weeks
Total weight gain/loss: Up two more pounds
Maternity clothes? All of the time

Stretch marks? None yet
Symptoms: Still feeling good. I'm having a ton of Braxton Hicks contractions and they're much more annoying than they every were when I was pregnant the last two times. 

Sleep: Not terrible, but not great either.

Best moment this week: Finishing up some big projects at work
Have you told family and friends: Yep!

Miss anything? Not too much.
Movement: All.the.time.
Food cravings: No real cravings this week.

Anything making you queasy or sick: None.
Have you started to show yet: Yep
Baby is a: surprise!
Belly Button in or out? Still in

Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy and tired
Looking forward to: Lexi's 2nd birthday party tomorrow and her actual birthday on Sunday!

I had my 34 week check-up this morning and everything's looking good. Baby Merklet's heart rate was 133 when the doctor checked and is already head down and likely to stay that way (yay!). Next appointment is in two more weeks and then I start going every week. I'm kind of in denial that this baby is going to be here soon. We haven't even decided on a girl name yet. 

Being "Team Green"

I've read a few blog posts lately about being "team green" when pregnant. A lot of these women found out the sex of their first baby during their ultrasound and then went team green with the next baby. Some of these women had very different experiences with being team green than we did. During their entire pregnancy they dreamed of having both a girl and a boy - two babies. And when their baby was born - boy or girl - they mourned the loss of the baby they didn't have.

We've never found out the sex of the baby until birth. And if you know me, you're probably surprised because I'm a planner. A major planner. And control freak. But Tom really felt strongly about not finding out and I can't keep a secret from him to save my life, so I got on board when we were pregnant with Stasa.

The whole time I was pregnant with Stasa I had no feeling what-so-ever about what sex the baby was. I even had dreams about the baby where we had brought the baby home and still didn't know the sex because we never took its diaper off. We bought a lot of gender neutral clothing and items and packed only one going home outfit in our hospital bag - a Redskins onesie (which Stasa and Lexi wore home and new baby will, too). We did pick out two names - one for a girl and one for a boy, but didn't have anything personalized because it seemed wasteful to me and most of you know I'm kind of cheap and practical (and Tom is the king of cheap).

All I wanted was a healthy and happy baby and when our little girl was born we were overjoyed. We never had that feeling of loss since we had a girl and not a boy. I think most of that was due to how I thought of the baby while I was pregnant or maybe I'm just different. I'm fairly sure I would have felt the same way had the baby been a boy. We had the same experience when Lexi was born. And again - I had no feeling either way when I was pregnant with her and I'm feeling that same way again.

Each time I've been pregnant, and this is now my third time around, I've always thought of my baby as sexless. Is that weird? Maybe. When I was pregnant the first time I thought mostly about how this baby would change our lives and how excited I was to become a mama. Then with number two I was more concerned with how Stasa would react to having a sibling and sharing us with the baby. And now it's more about being excited that we're adding to our family and giving our girls another sibling.

Now the girls both only know what it's like to have a sister, so if you ask them they'll say they want a baby girl and insist that this baby is a girl (who, by the way should be named Ariel). But I guarantee they won't even have a second thought if it's a boy. I think they're more excited about having a real live baby to play with than having a sister or brother. (Which also reminds me that we'll have to make sure they're careful around the baby - I have visions of them trying to change the baby's diaper or picking the baby up like they do their dolls - eek!)

Maybe it is fun for those who find out the sex before the baby is born, but for us it's so much more intimate and emotional finding out after labor when that baby is born. It's kind of like seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. And I get that even if you find out the sex prior to the baby being born you still have a HUGE thing to look forward to - your baby being born - and that is big. HUGE. Monumental. We loved hearing "it's a...GIRL!" while watching her be born and having that all to ourselves.

Obviously this is a very personal thing for each expecting parent. We've loved waiting and have held off finding out the sex each time and will probably do the same should we have more babies. So no judgement from this mama - find out or don't - just enjoy the ride.

33 Weeks Pregnant

How far along? 33 weeks
Total weight gain/loss: Same as last week (well at least I think it is since I only check my weight at doctor's appointments)
Maternity clothes? Every day and some are even getting a bit tight

Stretch marks? None yet
Symptoms: Feeling good this week. Yay!

Sleep: Not terrible, but not great either.

Best moment this week: Hanging out with old friends
Have you told family and friends: Yep!

Miss anything? Not too much.
Movement: All.the.time.
Food cravings: No real cravings this week.

Anything making you queasy or sick: None.
Have you started to show yet: Yep
Baby is a: surprise!
Belly Button in or out? Still in

Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy and tired
Looking forward to: The Moms of Multiples sale tomorrow - yay for cheap clothes!

32 Weeks Pregnant

How far along? 32 weeks
Total weight gain/loss: 21 pounds as of yesterday
Maternity clothes? Every day and some are even getting a bit tight

Stretch marks? None yet
Symptoms: I'm pretty sure my baby is carrying a mace or knife or something and battering me from the inside.  

Sleep: Not terrible, but not great either.

Best moment this week: My birthday!
Have you told family and friends: Yep!

Miss anything? Not too much.
Movement: All.the.time.
Food cravings: No real cravings this week.

Anything making you queasy or sick: None.
Have you started to show yet: Yep
Baby is a: surprise!
Belly Button in or out? Still in

Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy and tired
Looking forward to: Jennifer coming to town tonight and Kelly's birthday party tomorrow night!

A DIY Maternity Shoot

We spent our day today documenting my baby belly. Well, not the whole day, although we started in the morning and didn't really finish until late afternoon, but that included multiple breaks for kid time, lunch time, nap time, and many wardrobe changes. Tom helped me out with most of the pictures and played photographer for me and then I made use of my remote while he took a break. He didn't realize how exhausting it can be shooting someone else. Here are my favorites.

31 Weeks Pregnant

How far along? 31 weeks
Total weight gain/loss: I haven't stepped on a scale since my last appointment, so probably still around 19 pounds.
Maternity clothes? Most every day, though when I'm home I'll sometimes wear my nursing tanks which don't cover my belly at all.

Stretch marks? None yet
Symptoms: ::knock on wood:: Nothing terrible this week, in fact my sciatic pain has disappeared. 

Sleep: Not the best, but that's to be expected with a sick kid.

Best moment this week: No sciatic pain!
Have you told family and friends: Yep!

Miss anything? Not too much.
Movement: TONS! It's honestly my favorite part of being pregnant - feeling the baby move and having it all to my self. So selfish.
Food cravings: No real cravings this week.

Anything making you queasy or sick: None.
Have you started to show yet: You betcha.
Baby is a: surprise!
Belly Button in or out? Still in

Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy and tired
Looking forward to: The start of my birthday month!

The ick

I feel like I can finally breathe a sigh of relief. This week has been exhausting. Remember how we thought both kids had strep? Well Stasa's culture was the only one that came back positive and they did Lexi's twice and both times it was negative, but since her major symptoms were vomiting and a mild fever and Stasa had it, they diagnosed her with strep and sent us on our way with two prescriptions of Amoxicillin. Stasa responded immediately to the meds and bounced back like she always does. Lexi did not.

She spent all of Sunday alternating between vomiting and blowing out diaper after diaper. Then Tom reminded me that she had been having diarrhea the week before. So we quit worrying about food (food? ha! she hadn't eaten since that Saturday morning anyway) and focused on forcing fluids and monitoring her intake and output. Tuesday wasn't the best day. She ended up only drinking maybe 5 oz of fluid and had one 1/2 oz pee. After a call to the advice nurse we were sent to the ER. They ended up testing her and she was borderline dehydrated and had low sugar levels so she got an IV of glucose and then another of saline. They wanted a stool sample, but of course she didn't cooperate while there. They sent Tom home with a container to collect a sample and told him to bring it in the next morning.

Tom did as they said and got the sample, packed up the poop cup and Lexi, and drove back out to the hospital Wednesday morning. Then the hospital sent him on a wild goose chase, with the cup of poo and Lexi in tow, all over the place and every department gave him the run around. He was told that we weren't given the right type of container for a stool sample and that since the sample was from Wednesday and not Tuesday (the day she was in the ER), our insurance wouldn't cover the tests. Really? So he handed them the poop and told them to dispose of it and came home. I can't say I blame him. They took the poo cup and in turn gave him a bag of little mini containers to collect a new stool sample.

I came home mid-day Wednesday to relieve Tom and finish my work from home. Lexi was just going down for a nap and woke up after about an hour because she blew out of another diaper. She was inconsolable and finally calmed down while laying on me. I just propped her up on my chest and kept working and after awhile realized she hadn't moved or whined. I pulled my phone out and snapped a quick pic of her face and saw that she was passed out. Poor thing. I worked with her in my arms until Tom left to get Stasa. I kept holding her until my arms went numb and then transferred her to the couch.



Thursday morning I took her in for a follow-up at our pediatrician's office. Lexi dropped about 3 pounds and between the not eating and all of the vomiting and diarrhea I wasn't that surprised and neither were they. We saw one of the nurse practioners, who we love, and she was kind of ticked off that the urgent care put her on the antibiotic without a positive strep test and without doing any other tests. We got permission to throw out the Amox for Lexi since she didn't have any strep symptoms. After checking her over, she said Lexi looked great and it would probably take a couple of days for her appetite to come back. We still don't know what she had, but it was obviously some sort of virus and I'm just thankful that she's feeling better and is her normal self again. She woke up this morning with a full wet diaper, which she hasn't done in over a week. I never thought I would get so excited over what's in my child's diaper, but I did.