19 Weeks!

How far along: 19 Weeks!!!! Almost half way there! Well, really probably half way because I have never made it to 40 weeks! :)

Size of the baby: According to Baby Center, about the size of an heirloom tomato, 8 1/2 ounces and 6  inches long—that’s just from head to butt! So add the legs in there and that baby is getting pretty long!

Total weight gain/loss: I think I’ll skip this one.

Kidding! I’m up 14 pounds. Thank you Thanksgiving food and ginormous boobs! Seriously y’all they have to weigh 97 pounds EACH! Look back up at the picture…they stick out as much as my belly!!! I usually gain about 35 – 40 pounds when I am pregnant so since I’m half way that’s not so bad.

Maternity clothes: Not today!

Stretch marks: Old one.

Sleep: The past two nights have been great. Earlier in the week I couldn’t get into a deep sleep.

Best moment this week: I won a big award from our local Home Builders Association! Did y’all see my name in the newspaper?!!? I’m totally famous!!! HAHAHAHA!

Movement: YES  YES YES YES!!!!!! I feel the baby ALL THE TIME. This is the most active baby I’ve been pregnant with! And guess who else has felt it?

REECE!

She was SO excited when she felt it. I will never forget the look on her face! Hopefully the rest of the fam jam will feel it soon!

Food cravings/aversions: Still sweet tea. Oranges are GREAT this week! YUM!

Gender: Don’t know! Don’t want to know!

Labor signs: NO, thankfully.

Belly button in or out: In

What I am looking forward to: My sweet husband turns 31 on Sunday! I really enjoy giving him a hard time about being SO much older than me! (4 months!)

Also looking forward to our ultrasound on Wednesday!!! Hopefully we won’t be able to tell what the baby is!!! Bet you’ve never heard that!

Weekly wisdom: You’re only pregnant for 9 very short months!! Soak it up!

More and more people finally realize why I don’t want to know what we are having. You only get just a few surprises in life! We already have each…why not make the last one a surprise? I still feel like it’s a girl so if it comes out a girl I won’t be hugely surprised…but if it comes out and is a boy it will be a huge surprise and even more fun!

Thanksgiving

We had a great Thanksgiving! Officer Hubby’s off days happen to fall during Thanksgiving so we got extra time with him! We didn’t have lunch plans so for the first time ever I cooked an entire Thanksgiving meal all by myself! Let me tell ya, it was WORK. I totally agree that you burn 700 calories while cooking that meal! ;) It was so much fun though! I heart cooking.

For dinner we went to my parents where we stuffed ourselves once more! I mean STUFFED! Oops. On Friday we decked the halls! Hubby wishes I would wait until after his birthday to decorate(Dec 2nd!) but I just can’t control myself! Reece forced him into the attic to get all the decorations down! HAHA!

On Saturday we had an Auburn beat down Iron Bowl party with the other side of my family with lots of yummy tailgate food! It was fun, the game was kinda boring. This week will be a great game!

Then on Sunday we had our annual Gingerbread House Decorating Party! I couldn’t help myself, I bought the Hello Kitty Gingerbread Kit. The boys were less than thrilled with me on that one! Which brings us to Monday, back to school and back to work!

I am completely overwhelmed at everything going on right now. It’s such a busy busy busy time of year! I finally just told myself yesterday that I was just going to have to take one day at a time and do what I can….I have GOT to slow down and grow this baby! :)

18 Weeks!

Technically not 18 weeks until Friday, but I won’t be on the internet to post again and didn’t really want to schedule a post so here you go…my pre-turkey bump!

How far along: 18 Weeks!

Size of the baby: According to Baby Center, about the size of a bell pepper, 7 ounces and 5 1/2 inches long!

Total weight gain/loss: Beats me!

Maternity clothes: Some shirts.

Stretch marks: Old one.

Sleep: Sleep is ok. Pregnancy dreams are whack!

Best moment this week: See movement!

Movement: I felt BIG kicks last night! I couldn’t believe you couldn’t feel them from the outside! The kids are SO anxious to feel the baby. They ask everyday if they can feel it yet! :)

Food cravings/aversions: Fruit is my #1! Sweet tea still…I swear it keeps away my headaches!

Gender: Is it April yet?

Labor signs: NO, thankfully.

Belly button in or out: In

What I am looking forward to: Thanksgiving tomorrow and an Iron Bowl beat down Saturday!

Weekly wisdom: My bump will always be a pre-turkey bump because I don’t like turkey! ;)

A Day at the Indian Mounds

Yesterday Josh went with Griffin and his class to the Moundville Archeological Park. If you aren’t from around here you can see what the park is about here!

The classes in front of one of the mounds…Griff is second from the end on the right!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I have no clue what this thing is but he was sure to tell me he threw his the farthest!

Pretty sure they had a fun time! :)

The True Meaning of Christmas!

Reece has been working on this for her Christmas Play! :) She’s Mary! Melt me!

We did this little video a couple of weeks ago just before bed time! She’s actually almost finished memorizing it now!

And you should be glad you got to see the “un-shy” side to Reecey!

 

17 Weeks!

 

Oh em gee!! We’re having a baby!!!!!!!

And, no, Josh didn’t punch me in the eye. It got something in it and got scratched! So, it’s all junky.

How far along: 17 Weeks!

Size of the baby: According to Baby Center, about the size of a turnip, 5 ounces and 5 inches long!

Total weight gain/loss: Beats me!

Maternity clothes: Not today!

Stretch marks: Old one.

Sleep: Can’t get enough!

Best moment this week: I love my life. It’s always hard to pick a best moment. If I had to pick a moment, I would say this: Josh has my name tattooed in Japanese on his back. He was playing around with Reece the other night and she said, “Mommy, that’s your name on Daddy’s back! It sure looks messy!” HA!

Movement: Oh yes! Yesterday at work I was leaned back on a chair and felt a huge something. I shot straight up and I wish I could have seen my face! It felt like a kick you get when you’re 9 months pregnant. Weirdest thing ever. I’m not convinced that’s what it was but maybe? At bedtime last night I felt all kinds of little movement! :)

Food cravings/aversions: Eggs=no thank you! Guess it’s a good thing the chickens have backed off on laying a little! Sweet tea is my BFF. And sweet tea from FIG with lemon is my BFF 4-EVA! Fruit is so good!

Gender: Yes I still think it’s a girl. I am so sure I almost just want to go ahead and find out at my ultrasound. But, nope. Not gonna happen!

Labor signs: NO, thankfully.

Belly button in or out: In

What I am looking forward to: Thanksgiving foooooooood!

Weekly wisdom: People always say to me “I just don’t know how you do it.” Truth is I don’t do it. WE do it. As in April and Josh! If it wasn’t for my husband being so fabulous we would only have one kid! I’ve realized lately that a lot of moms are doing things on their on…husbands gone for a week on a business trip, hunting trips, etc. Thankfully mine doesn’t hunt. His hobby is his car! Which drives me bonkers sometimes but at least he is at home! He picks up the boys everyday from school and has their homework done by the time I get home. I pick up Reece from school, if it’s gymnastics day hubs has the boys bathed and fed by the time we get home. These are just a few things he does but if he wasn’t so involved, we would not have 4 kids! :)

Peyton’s Heart

We went last week to Birmingham to have Peyton’s heart checked out. I don’t think I’ve mentioned this before but we saw a cardiologist when he was about a year old. His pediatrician kept a close watch on him for his first year because she kept hearing heart murmurs. When she was still hearing it/them at 12 months we decided to make everyone feel better and have them checked out.  So we did and everything was fine.

Fast forward to the last month or so and his little passing out episodes. We ended up seeing the same cardiologist we saw when he was a baby which thrilled me! He still has the exact same three heart murmurs that he had as a baby…which are normal murmurs to have. The doctor was the most thorough doctor I have ever come in contact with. Tons of questions and a super long echocardiogram.

His heart checked out just fine! The cardiologist thinks it may be an exercise induced asthma that he has so now we’re working on an appointment with a pulmonary doctor!

So thankful his heart is fine!

Oh and have I mentioned he weighs 78 pounds?? That’s a whopping TEN pounds more than Griffin! He will be caught up with me before too long! Well maybe not since I’m currently growing too! ;)

A day at the Georgia Aquarium

On Friday I went with Peyton’s class to the Georgia Aquarium. Poor guy has been waiting on this day for YEARS because at the other school the boys went to you went to the aquarium in 2nd grade, at the new school it’s 3rd grade! So, Griffin got to go two years in a row!

I get motion sickness very easy while riding in a car. There was no way I was going to ride the charter bus with a bunch of kids. I put my big girl panties on and made the drive to Atlanta by myself. I wasn’t stressed about getting to Atlanta, I was just worried about traffic and where to go once I was in Atlanta. The drive over was ok. Traffic came to a complete stop three times on the interstate because of construction. Once I was just about into downtown Atlanta I saw tons and tons of motorcycle cops and then tons and tons of patrol cars…all with their lights on. (They were on the opposite side of the road.) Then it hit me that it was the funeral procession for the two Atlanta Police Officers that died last week.

Shoot me.

Once I realized that my heart sank and tears came pouring! Like uncontrollable sobbing. I would have been this way even if I wasn’t pregnant. I’m sure other cop wives understand!:)

So, by the grace of the good Lord above ONLY did I make it to the aquarium! Because I really couldn’t even think straight.

Once I was there I waited a few minutes for the bus to arrive and then had a super fun time with my sweet little guy!

The 3.5 hour trip home was much less stressful! Plus Peyton could ride back with me so I wasn’t so lonely! Never again will I drive that far without Officer Hubby by myself! EVA!

16 Weeks!

How far along: 16 Weeks!

Size of the baby: According to Baby Center,  about the size of an avocado; 4 1/2 inches long and 3 1/2 ounces!

Total weight gain/loss: Still up 7 pounds!

Maternity clothes: Some.

Stretch marks: Old one.

Sleep: I heart sleep!

Best moment this week: Making it through downtown Atlanta by myself! HA!

Movement: Yep!

Food cravings/aversions: Still hate eggs. Still loving sweet tea! Still loving fruit.

Gender: I still think girl. And don’t get me wrong, I honestly do not care either way, but I will be shocked if it’s a boy!

Labor signs: NO, thankfully.

Belly button in or out: In

What I am looking forward to: A week that’s not as busy as last week!

Weekly wisdom: Fresh out.

I dreamed last night that I had the baby! The only people in the room were me, Josh and my friend Jamie(who is a L&D nurse). It was a girl, she had a head full of hair that came out clean and eyelashes that were super long! And by the way, this is not the first time I have had this exact dream! OH and I only pushed once! Praise the Lord!

I’m loving our fresh, new design! I honestly just sent Leslie the pictures and told her to do whatever she wanted! It came out perfect! You can visit her design blog by clicking Sweetie Baby’s on the right sidebar!

Fun at the Fair!

We took the kiddos to the West Alabama State Fair last night! It was cooooooold, there was funnel cake, there was fun, there was funnel cake, there was NO one there, there was funnel cake, there were NO lines, there was funnel cake, the boys rode big kid rides, there was funnel cake, there was a jumbo bucket of fries and guess what??!!! There may have been a little funnel cake involved! :) We had lots of fun!

We are off to Peyton’s appointment at UAB. I will update via Twitter!

No 16 week update tomorrow because I am headed to the Georgia Aquarium with Peyton’s class! I know better than to ride a charter bus with a bunch of kids so I’m driving. All by myself. Don’t tell Big Mama! To Atlanta. Little scary. That must mean I’m a grown up!

Gobble On!

Today we had Reece’s Thanksgiving lunch at school! It’s always fun to see the little ones dressed up like Indians and singing! She actually sang this year! She sings ALL.THE.TIME. at home but when she gets in front of other people she usually doesn’t sing at all. She did today!

She thinks this part is the dumbest thing ever and just stands there… I am certain that Indians wore hair bows..

Sweet friends! Her BFF Mattie and sweet MJ(a fellow cop kid!).

Thanksgiving lunch at the boys’ school is tomorrow. We will sadly miss it because tomorrow is Peyton’s appointment with the cardiologist. We’re hopeful he has a perfectly healthy heart! :)

Car Boo Boo

If you know me in real life, chances are you know how very particular I am about my car. I am careful about how I drive it, where I drive it, where I park it, etc. That’s why it is 2 1/2 years old and still looks brand new! It has one little ding in one of the doors that was put there by some mean person in the Lowe’s parking lot this summer. I almost puked in the parking lot when we got back to the car and saw it!

Yesterday I drove to Birmingham to my cousin’s baby shower. My mom, step-sister and Reece were with me. On the way home we were in heavy traffic and out of nowhere the car in front of me hit a blown-out 18-wheeler tire and flung it right into us. :( It was loud and scary. I didn’t swerve whatsoever because that would have caused an even worse outcome. I could see dents(4-5) in the hood and pulled into the next exit to check things out.

When I got to the front of the car I almost puked. The grill is completely busted up and there are scratches and dents all over the hood. Boo. Then I glanced up and could see my sweet little girl smiling the biggest smile ever at me and I didn’t even care about the car. Things could have been SO much worse. I’m thankful that there’s just a little damage that can be easily fixed!

You can’t tell how busted up the grill really is, it’s not just the little spot where there are pieces missing, it’s the whole thing! Oh well! Hope you all had a fabulous weekend! How about that Crimson Tide!!!??

15 Weeks!

The baby says to tell you all “ROLL TIDE!” :)

How far along: 15 Weeks!

Size of the baby: According to Baby Center,  about 4 inches long and the size of an apple!

Total weight gain/loss: I went to the doctor yesterday and I’m up 7 pounds. Not to bad considering I have not been eating very healthy!

Maternity clothes: Some.

Stretch marks: Old one.

Sleep: I sleep well and can’t get enough!

Best moment this week: Hearing the baby’s heartbeat at my appointment yesterday. It was 160, by the way.

Movement: Yep!

Food cravings/aversions: SWEET TEA!!!! And I don’t feel bad for drinking it either. Still loving fruit.  Also Oat Revolution Peach Oatmeal! I hate eggs still.

Gender: Right this very second I am convinced it’s a girl.

Labor signs: NO, thankfully.

Belly button in or out: In

What I am looking forward to: Getting hubby started on the nursery!

Weekly wisdom: Eat the cupcake and the cookie! Especially if this is your last pregnancy! HAHAHA!

Our Anatomy ultrasound is in 4 short weeks!!!! It’s going to be SO hard not to find out. I can do it. I can do it. I can do it! :)

Halloween Fun!

We had a fun time trick or treating last night! We started off at Big Mama’s house, she has been looking forward to this for a week! She FILLED their buckets to capacity with candy. Like overflowing. Oh well, that’s her job! :) She made me and Josh  the baby a strawberry cheesecake pie.

Then we were off to our old neighborhood for some trick or treating! We went there because we don’t live in a neighborhood anymore(yahoo!) and it’s fairly close to Big Mama’s house. This also happens to be my sister’s new neighborhood where she’s building! ;) So they met us for some fun!

Griffin’s costume was about 4 inches too short. He says he told me a week ago. I don’t remember that, but that doesn’t mean he didn’t either! That’s why he has on jeans!

I also hate that our pictures are not fabulous. Josh met me with the boys and we just kind of went from there so we weren’t home to take any fun ones!

Now to figure out what to do with the 97,000 pounds of candy on my kitchen table…