23, 24, 25 weeks and counting!

Holy cow the past 3 weeks have been a whirlwind! Lots and lots of rain and lots of growing and lots of travel have happened in that time frame. And somewhere in there, I turned 32, too!

So week 23 started with a homeschooling conference, which sounds random, but Ross and I had a lot of fun. It was a great way to reconnect and be rejuvenated in this parenting job before we start round 2! Thanks to Ross' mom for watching our munchkin while we got out. Unfortunately, the rest of the week was pretty painful for me. Some SPD pain kicked in and I was having trouble walking. It's so hard for me not to get discouraged when pain flares up!

Week 24 started with a whirlwind trip to Big Cedar Lodge! It was our first and last real trip as a family of 3. Saturday was SO fun, but Sunday was a bit of a bummer with even more rain. We definitely want to go back, but now we know to plan for a bit longer of a trip. The fresh air and lots of walking was really good for all of us, and I was feeling pretty good!

Unfortunately, all that activity caught up with me again in week 25, and I was just plain sore and exhausted. Noah and I traveled to Omaha while Ross worked on house stuff (the new goal is to have the house finished before THIS baby is born)! I got to go to a really special dinner in honor of my dad while we were in Omaha, and it was fun to see family, but it sure was a lot of travel. Thankfully, after spending something like 15-16 hours in the car in an 8 day period, I got a prenatal massage last week between working at the hospital Tuesday and Thursday, and it was AMAZING. Everything I needed. Thanks to my mom for watching Noah so I could leave the house for something like that during the day!

And here we are at 26 weeks! I feel huge overnight, and I'm in that weird place where I feel like I'm barely over halfway, but baby is definitely viable, and third trimester is going to be here before we know it. Eek! This is HAPPENING. And where did the month of April go?!

Weeks 21 and 22

Time is FLYING. I'm sitting here well into week 23, feeling baby move daily, and losing track of how far along I am! I'm so so so thankful that the nausea is still 90% gone and, knock on wood, I've been healthy for a month straight!!! It makes a huge difference.

How big is baby? At our ultrasound at 21 weeks, baby's estimated weight was 1 lb 0 oz, the head circumference was 18.61 cm, and the abdomen was 17.05 cm around. It blows my mind how much growth happens in the second half of pregnancy! I know that technically the rate of growth actually slows down, compared to the first trimester. Yet, growing from a 1 lb baby to a (hopefully) 7 lb baby feels a whole lot more physically impactful than growing from the size of two cells to the size of a blueberry! This past weekend, Ross and I went to a homeschooling conference. There was a pro-life booth in the vendor hall with little models of babies at certain gestational ages. It was kind of cool to be 23 weeks pregnant and holding the 24 week model. There's a BABY in there!

Sex: It's a GIRL! With Noah, our guess was girl, and he's all boy. With this one, our guess was boy, and the ultrasound technician put the probe on my belly and said, "you're wrong again!" (I think Noah was kind of upset she said it that way, and he took it personally.) So once more, we were in shock. It took a few days to adjust to the idea, but we are so excited. We asked Noah what her name should be, and he said "Red." We'll work on that. But in the meantime, it's so fun to have a pronoun to use. My friend Rachel bought us our very first GIRLY cloth diaper a few days later, and it was so cute! And made everything feel even more real. 

Total weight gain/loss: I think at 21 weeks I was up 10 pounds? Feeling bigger every day now!

Exercise: Oh boy. I was really happy to be getting into a routine of Barre3 twice a week and walking once a week, greatly anticipating the walks increasing as the weather improved. But last week, we walked to BSF and it killed my hips. I'm definitely struggling with this. Walks with Noah are my very favorite part of our summer routine, and I'm so so sad that they might not happen this summer. 

Stretch marks: None yet, knock on wood. I somehow didn't get them with Noah?! But I haven't been as vigilant with almond oil this time, so we will see.

Swelling: Just yes. It's really uncomfortable. Not sure what I'm going to do when it's too hot for compression hose! Getting a massage next week, so I really hope that helps for a bit.

Maternity clothes: Exclusively. I even had to switch to a maternity tank for pajamas since my belly was getting cold in my old PJ shirts!

Sleep: It's fairly decent (aka fitful, lots of vivid dreams, and lots of potty breaks, but otherwise sleeping through the night). About every other night, I'll have a bout of insomnia after waking up to pee, either around 2am or 5am. This lasts anywhere from 30 to 90 minutes, but it could be so much worse. I'm SO GLAD I'm not working night shift this pregnancy!

Food cravings: This is so bizarre to me. I remember last time, when food sounded good, it sounded REALLY good! This time, food still mostly just sounds tolerable, or most definitively not at all. Onions, cooked or raw, have become a definitive no right now. They do not sit well. If I'm craving anything, it's slightly tart tropical fruit like pineapple and mango. And also the gluten free lemon bars at Dolce. A few weeks ago, baby must've had a growth spurt because I was craving chocolate cake with chocolate frosting. But nothing too intense, random, or consistent. 

Symptoms: Enjoying a bit of a sweet spot at the moment. I only get nauseated if I get too hungry, and my fatigue is okay as long as I'm not awake for the day at 2am. Biggest symptom is still swelling and pelvic pain this week, and I'm fighting a lot of discouragement on that front, along with sorrow that my "last summer with Noah" won't look quite like I'd hoped.

Movement: Yes! Consistently in the morning and evening, and sometimes more often. The other night, Noah got to feel a few kicks during bedtime stories. The look on his face was sheer delight!

What I'm loving: I love looking pregnant and feeling the baby move. Pregnancy is such a unique season of life and growth, and I do want to soak it up. Even though I know I don't know what life is going to look like in a few months when our family totally changes, I do know everyone says your heart just expands to make room for the next baby. So much love.

What I'm looking forward to: Feeling more big kicks and rolls! And having my gestational diabetes test behind me.

Best moment this week: Seeing baby on ultrasound two weeks ago was really sweet. We got to see her little profile and her little hands and feet and it all just feels so much more real. It's also cute to hear Noah use his "baby sister" voice, and to hear him start to include her in things already. And he notices babies everywhere. I'm so excited for these two to meet!

Easy Stovetop Granola

Why have I never made stovetop granola before? It's seriously SO easy!

In a medium saucepan, melt 2 Tbs butter on medium heat and stir in 2 Tbs maple syrup, 2 tsp vanilla, 1 tsp cinnamon, and a pinch of salt.

Add 1 1/2 cups of oatmeal, 1/4 cup unsweetened coconut, and 1/4 cup walnut pieces.

Cook on medium low for about 10 minutes, stirring every few minutes.

Then, remove from the burner and let it cool in the pan, stirring occasionally.

So easy!