Life After I "Dew"

A week ago today we woke up excited, happy, not at all nervous, and ready to find out what gender the baby growing in my belly would be. We were ALL thinking it was a girl and all of my symptoms said so. This was the first time we waited until the 20 week anatomy scan to find out. With Kendall and James we opted for the elective ultrasound to confirm gender at 14 weeks but this time we debated waiting till birth to be surprised but then we quickly realized that we are far too OCD and impatient for that.

Following up with my last post, the dreaded two week wait didn't end up being positive that month {conceiving in March}.  Unfortunately my lady visitor showed up which was okay because we had literally just started trying that month.  Seeing that negative test, however, made us realize how badly we did want to add another baby to our family.

In April we started trying, for real.  With the help of the Ovia app {not sponsored} we were
successful and on May 1st I got the faintest positive pregnancy test.  I couldn't believe my eyes.  I was in shock, didn't believe it so naturally I took another test and then another and another.  I think I ended up taking 5-7 tests that week, just to be sure ;-).

Telling our friends and family was super fun and we kind of let the news happen organically.  We bought the kids 'Big Sis' and 'Big Bro' tees and just had them wear them whenever we went to a gathering.  Some picked up on it right away, others it took a second.  I really wish I could have taken a video of all the reactions because some were truly shocked while others were more expecting of the news.  I loved telling people this way because the big kids got to be the stars and took some of the attention off me {fun fact: I get super awkward when I am the center of attention}.  Because of all the excitement they got when they wore those shirts, James ONLY wanted to wear his 'Big Bro' shirt for about a month straight.

So fast forward to today.  I am 11 weeks and almost out of the exhausting first trimester.  I am feeling pretty good/normal now but that hasn't been the case thus far.  Almost immediately after I peed on that stick I had a bump.  I started getting really bad headaches every day.  I was exhausted, more so than either time before.  Thankfully Kendall was still in school at that time and James still napped regularly so I was able to lay down and/or nap when I needed to.  Thankfully I've never experienced morning sickness but some days my headaches were so bad it did make me nauseous.

I've maintained my workouts thus far.  My normal routine is to get up and do yoga in the morning before I start my day.  Now that schools out for summer, and my kids seem to fight 24/7, I need something else {mid day} to keep me sane so I've been rotating through some of my old favorites on Beachbody On Demand.  There's also an Active Maternity series with Autumn Calabrese {creator of 21 Day Fix} that I am really enjoying.  Working out throughout a pregnancy is not something I've done in the past and I'm really happy with how much I've kept up with my routine so far.  I will say it's a whole new ballgame, working out in the first trimester.  I am out of breath so quickly, things are already feeling more difficult than they were just a few weeks ago, and I'm already following the modifier for my more challenging workouts.  I know once I hit the second trimester things will even out a bit but right now it's tough.

The kids and Jimmy are SO EXCITED.  The day or so after I told Jimmy the news I remember texting with him and I could feel the happiness radiating through his messages.  I think he's more excited this time than the previous two.  Kendall immediately wanted to start talking about baby names and bedroom arrangements.  The next day she went to school and told 9 friends and her teacher.  Every Thursday she gets so excited to read the weekly update and see what the size of the baby is.  It's so fun having a big kid to share it with this time around.  James, on the other hand, doesn't quite know what's going on.  He will tell you he's going to be a big bro {it's bro, not brother, he will correct you} and he says he wants it to be a boy.  When we talk about a baby in my belly he looks super confused and kind of goes on with his day.

So this baby will be our tie-breaker baby and I'm not sure if we'll find out the gender.  At first I didn't want to find out.  I thought we have one of each and wouldn't it be fun to wait until the end?  Jimmy does not agree that that would be fun, he thinks that is super stressful.  So I have a feeling we'll end up finding out and the more real this pregnancy has become the more I don't think I can wait to find out either.  The general consensus is "it's a girl".  I feel it, everyone who's given their input has said it and the Chinese gender chart says girl {it was right for my two other kids, ha!}.  So we'll see!

I've had two ultrasounds so far.  The first one was just a quick, let's ease your mind, ultrasound.  I was about 8 weeks and the baby just looked like a jellybean in there.  I had another one done this week at 10.5 weeks and it was amazing to see the difference in just two-ish weeks.  There were arms and legs and little eye sockets.  My doctors office now does 3D ultrasounds which was amazing to see this early on.  We took the kids and Kendall was mesmerized by the whole thing, it was really fun to share that with them.  I get another one in two weeks again {yay!} and then I think that's it until the big 20 week anatomy scan.

My due date is January 11 2018.  It still seems so weird to say '2018' because that's NEXT YEAR.  It also feels so weird to have a winter baby seeing as my other two are August babies.  I'm actually really excited about a winter baby!  It will be after the hustle and bustle of the holidays so we will have nothing on the schedule until spring time so we can just hunker down and snuggle in.  I'll have another c-section so the baby's birth day will probably be a few days sooner than that due date but so far he/she is measuring right on track with that date {within 2 days}.

I don't know how often I'll update on this pregnancy {my pregnancy updates with James were sporadic at best} but I want to keep some documentation for selfish reasons.  I want to take a second to thank everyone who has already congratulated us and wished us nothing but happiness so far.  Sharing the news was so exciting and it warms my heart to see how much love we have received.  Thank you, thank you, thank you and I hope you'll follow along on our adventure to a family of five!

36 weeks. 23 {maybe less} days left to go.

To say I'm ready and excited to meet this little dude would be an understatement.  I thought I was anxious with Kendall, I am 110 times more anxious this time.  The second time around is no joke, people.

I feel great, for the most part, still.  I'm starting to get "lightening crotch", seriously where did that term come from?  I swear if I walk for any length of time it feels like something is trying to poke it's way out of my body.  I don't know if I remember that with Kendall but WOWZA!  My feet are pretty achy and I have to wear shoes at all times now.  My back is also starting to hurt more these days and so I've been making myself relax, take an Epsom salt bath when I can and it really does help, a lot.

Other than that?  We are just sitting around, anxiously awaiting our newest, fourth family member.  His room is ready, I've started to pack my hospital bag, c-section has been scheduled.  Who knows, I may end up installing the infant seat in the car this week if I get crazy.  Big Sister has been showing signs of readiness too, I think.  She's been playing with her Baby Brother doll a ton and she's been a super mama's girl and I can't help but wonder if it's because she knows her days as an only child are limited?

Remember how I swore I wouldn't gain with James Weston what I gained while pregnant with Kendall?  Well, never say never.  So far I am just two pounds shy of what I weighed the day I had Kendall Paige, almost 3 years ago.  Fail.  But I swear, maybe it's because my hair was shorter when I was pregnant with her, I don't feel as huge.  I much prefer my belly this time around though, it's higher and more round and I feel like it's smaller.  Jimmy was shocked when I told him that I'm pushing my Kendall weight because he feels like I look smaller {better} this time too {thanks, Babe!}.

Even though I've felt good this entire pregnancy {for the most part} I am so over it.  I forgot how miserable the final weeks are.  I am not complaining {yes I am} because it is all totally worth it, obviously, but dudes!  The summer heat and a 30-40 lb weight gain is no joke.  I sweat just standing outside, not even doing anything.  It's making for a very indoor kind of summer which I hate because I love summer, I love the pool, I love laying out, and I love taking Kendall to the park.  All of those things have been done this summer but very minimal and that makes me sad.  I am just ready to start feeling like "me" again.

I've started thinking about post-partum and even indulged in a little retail therapy.  Silly me, once I lost all my weight after Kendall I got rid of all my "fat girl" clothes so thankfully Old Navy had a killer sale last week and I got a few things that will hopefully make me feel better during my transition.  I will be using My Fitness Pal to track my calories again since it worked so well for me the first time.  Dare I say I miss tracking?  I just can't wait to be in control of my body again and feel "normal".

Until then, we wait.

Here we are, 25 weeks, so close to being done with the 2nd trimester and entering my third and final trimester.  Holy cow!

I am still feeling great!  I mean great, really.  I have said it a hundred times over, if I didn't know I was pregnant I wouldn't know. Minus the fact that I feel him moving constantly and my clothes continue to get smaller.

Baby boy has been very active lately, mostly at night, and I love it. I have to say that feeling movement is definitely the best part of pregnancy and the part that I'll miss the most.  Love feeling baby kicks!

Still haven't had any outrageous pregnancy symptoms. No weird cravings, no unusual aches & pains, no crazy dreams.  I'd say the only thing I'm noticing is that I get tired a lot quicker.  Walking on the treadmill has become and actual workout. Where I was walking at a 3.5 and incline of 3, now I can only do 2.5 at incline 3. And I'm sweating when it's done.  So that's fun.  But, at least I'm still exercising, right?

Sleep has been decent.  I wake up about 2-3 times a night, whether to go to the bathroom or to get comfy.  I have to sleep with a pillow between my legs or else my hips hurt something fierce.  I'm normally a tummy sleeper so I have figured out a way to position the pillows just so and it almost feels like I'm sleeping on my stomach again, almost.

Baby James might end up being called Weston.  I told Jimmy earlier this week that it's weird that we never really refer to him as James and how I was calling Kendall by her name from the day we found out she was a girl.  I don't know if I'm not sold on the name or if it's just because I need to see him first or what but we have been talking about calling him by his middle name, Weston.  We'll see.  I think we're going to wait till he gets here to decide.

Did I mention I don't want to get any bigger?  Because I don't. I'm perfectly happy {not really} at this size and if this ended up being the biggest I got I'd be happy.  I know that's not going to happen so we'll deal with it.  With that being said I am so motivated to get back to working out again.  I am more motivated and ready this time than I was with Kendall and I'm actually looking forward to tracking my calories and running again.

And for comparison purposes, because who doesn't like a good comparison photo, here I was at 25 weeks with Kendall. I'm definitely more round this time and I like that a lot better than that weird ski-slope belly I had going on with her.  At this point with her I was complaining about my feet hurting a lot so I'm thankful that that is not the case this time. I had also been having a lot of dreams {that ended up being true once she was born} and I've had a few like that this time so I'm curious to find out if they'll be true as well.

Up next on our baby agenda is finishing the nursery.  It's so close to being done and it's coming together so perfectly I could pee a little.  The walls and furniture have been painted, the curtains are hung, the clothes are in the drawers.  We still need to put the crib together, get the bedding and changing pad cover, and hang the prints on the wall and it'll be a finished boy nursery.  I can't wait to share it with you.

For now I'm trying to take it easy when I can, rest more per Jimmy's demand request.  I'm trying to soak up this pregnancy and not wish it by too fast because I know it will the the last.  With that being said, I'm thinking about doing maternity/family pictures.  I didn't think I wanted too but now my BFF did them and a few of my fellow pregnant blog friends and I'm starting to get the itch to take some too.  I feel like we need to document this time.  We didn't do them with Kendall and I don't regret it but I think I would if we skipped them this time around.  So, stay tuned, maybe I'll have some to share before long.

Can you believe it's really been almost a month since I did a belly pic/bumpdate?  Second pregnancy syndrome anyone?

Well...I hate to report, not much has changed since that last bumpdate.  I still feel great, for the most part.  My tailbone still aches every once in a while from when I fell down the stairs, around 12 weeks, and my hips hurt during the night from sleeping only on my sides.  Other than that, I am feeling really great!  My pregnancy with Kendall was much the same, guess I was just meant to grow babies.

My belly {and boobs for that matter} are getting bigger and I swear in this past week I've grown two sizes.  I'm officially in all maternity clothes, all the time.  Right now I love wearing maternity clothes but I know that will change and I'll be dying to get back into pants with a real button soon enough.

In case you missed it, Baby Dew #2 has a full name now!  James Weston Dew.  I am in love.  Weston was a name we were considering before we decided to go the family name route and I just think it sounds perfect.  I love that it will be a great grown-up, man name as well.  Kendall knows his name and says "JAMES! Wes-tin Dew!" so proudly. I still haven't gotten used to calling him James.

I'm feeling movement more each day but still nothing constant.  It's mostly at night, once I sit/lay down for the first time all day and I usually am laying on my side when I notice it.  I have been getting little glimpses of movement throughout the day and I love it. I can't wait till it's a regular occurrence. Jimmy and Kendall are still waiting to feel him move and I just cannot wait for that day!  I just felt him from the outside for the first time this week so hopefully not too much longer before they can get in on the action.

I took a little hiatus on working out for a couple of weeks but this week I'm back at it!  I'm definitely looking bigger than I did at this point with Kendall but I don't know where I stand as far as weight gain.  I just know that I want to remain as active as possible throughout, regardless of what the scale says.  I still feel really great.

We have yet to make any progress on the nursery yet.  We have time though, right?  I've gotten a few things, mostly decor stuff but nothing major has happened and probably won't for a little while longer.  I do know that once it does happen baby brother is going to have his drawers full of clothes!  I've bought a few things here and there but his cousin gave him boxes of clothes that will last through 6 months, if not longer!  Kid is set and will be stylin'.

Next week is my 20 week appointment where we'll have our official gender/anatomy scan.  I cannot wait to see his sweet little profile again.  Oh, and he better still be a he...

15 weeks and I feel great! Ok, well, most of the time.  If you are pregnant or have ever been pregnant you know that they say the 2nd trimester is the "honeymoon trimester" because you typically have more energy than you did the first trimester and you aren't big and uncomfortable like you are in the third.  Besides feeling really tired today, I think it's true.

This week/weekend has been the greatest.  From our night out as a family of three {those days are numbered}, to finding out the gender of our sweet new addition, to sharing our excitement with our families, it really has been one for the memory books.

We are thrilled that we are having a boy, a baby brother.  I honestly had no idea what to expect when we walked in for that ultrasound but as soon as the tech said, "do you know what it is?" I got all anxious and started looking {even though I had no idea what I was looking at or for} and then she said "IT'S A BOY!" and it was nothing short of amazing.  Jimmy teared up, Kendall yelled "awe my baby brother!" and I just couldn't quit smiling.  I hope I never forget that moment.  Our families are totally excited to be welcoming a boy and just when I thought no one could be more spoiled than Kendall, I have a feeling this boy will never want for a thing either.

We thought we had a name picked out but now that we "know" it's different.  We have it narrowed down to 3 names, one being a family name so I'm sure it'll win, and as soon as we know I'll be sharing it.  It's actually kind of fun to still be deciding.  We knew before Kendall was even conceived what her name would be so I kind of like taking it slow this time.

The night before we had our ultrasound I was saying a prayer to God, asking him to give me a sign that this baby was healthy {I had fallen down the stairs last weekend and was worried, a little} and I swear as soon as I was done I felt a little flutter.  Amazing.  I forgot how good those little bubbles feel.  I've felt them a few times since and I can't wait till they're a regular occurrence every day.

Due to the fall, my back has been extra achy, more so than it was.  My pain was in my lower back and now it's totally in my tailbone.  It's been slowly getting better and it's actually taken my focus off the lower back pain so hopefully it all kicks the bucket soon.

I had been super congested early on in this pregnancy which I know is a common symptom but lately it's been worse.  My nose is stuffy but not runny, it's been bloody a couple of times and it's just super annoying. I read my app update this week and looks like it's not going anywhere any time soon.  So, that's awesome.

This pregnancy has been nothing short of amazing thus far.  I do miss my wine here and there but otherwise I have no complaints.  I had a great pregnancy with Kendall too so maybe I am just meant to do this baby thing!

Yesterday I turned 7 weeks pregnant with Baby Dew #2 and let me tell you, I feel {and look} much further. In my defense I am only 5'3" and I have a shorter torso so perhaps that's why I'm rocking a bump so early?

I'm actually starting to think that I am, in fact, further than 7 weeks and it's not just because my belly is noticeably larger {than any 7 week pregnant person I know} but lots of other things have been happening lately too.  For one, I have been feeling "movement" for over a week now. At 7 weeks the baby is only the size of a blueberry making almost impossible to feel any sort of movement. The first couple of times I chalked it up to gas but now it's been going on long enough that I know better.  I have also been having round ligament pain which {after consulting with Dr. Google} is something that doesn't happen until after 8-10 weeks.

I know every pregnancy is different and that the second time around things happen much faster, but the way I look/feel is comparable to week 16 with Kendall, a big 10 week difference.  I started thinking about the timing of things and in October is when I was taking OPKs, got a positive and we did everything we were supposed to do as soon as I got a positive OPK.  I did take a pregnancy test the beginning of November {a few days before my expected period} and it was negative, however, I'm starting to think that the reason it was negative was because I took it so soon.  I like the sound of that story much better than the "we abstained all month then "did it" one day {3DPO, at that} and got pregnant".  I have my first appointment on the 8th so I will obviously talk to my doctor then and see if we can get an earlier ultrasound to verify.

Speaking of, let's address the possibility of twins.  Every time I post a picture I get the same comment "OMG TWINS!".  Well...I'm sure it would be exciting to blog about Life After Twins but that is not a story I am interested in.  Twins don't run in our families and we didn't use fertility drugs so the chance of twins {although still possible} is low.  It would be shocking, to say the least, if we found out there were two babies in there.  I know it's not that we couldn't do it but we don't want to.  Listen, we had a hard enough time deciding that we wanted to add a second member to our family and that's where we want to keep it.  We don't want to be out-numbered by our children.  So, let's keep the twins comments to a minimum.

I'm feeling like this baby is a girl.  It's not like this crazy, strong, motherly instinct but more like I can't imagine life as a boy mom.  Like last time, we have a girl name picked out but cannot agree on a boy name, at all.  And, if you ask Kendall it's a girl.  I even mentioned the possibility that it could be a boy and she laughed.  Oh and let's not forget the Chinese gender chart, which also says girl.  We'll see!

Hmm...let's see...sleep sucks.  Like I literally wake up every hour, no joke.  I just cannot get comfortable, already.  I busted out the good ole body pillow this week {lucky Jimmy} and it helps bus then I want to switch sides in the middle of the night and it's a whole process.  I am normally a tummy sleeper so I'm fairly certain that's why I can't get comfortable any other way.

Other than that I feel great.  No morning sickness, no crazy emotional roller coaster {yet}, no maternity clothes {surprisingly} and I haven't been overly tired like I was with Kendall.  I've actually had a lot of energy and I'm happy to report I've been maintaining my 3 times a week workouts.

My next update will most likely be after my doctors appointment so hopefully I'll be able to report back on the due date/twins issue.

Yep, 4.5 weeks.  I told you I was, like, one day pregnant.  I know it's not protocol to tell before you reach the 12 week mark but, what can I say, I live on the edge. Truth be told, if something does happen, God forbid, I'd share that too.  Plus, my mother-in-law gave me great advice, "the more people that know, the more that can pray" and I love that.  So, pray for us, please.

So...where do we start. Well where did we leave off?  Oh yeah, we were taking last month off. So we did in the sense that we just abstained all but ONE day in the entire month.  That's right, we tried and tried for 4 months, planning it to a T and doing everything just the way we should and nada.  The one month we take off and the one time we did throw caution to the wind was 3 days past ovulation so we figured we were "safe".  Fast forward to last Friday.

We had a date night planned and I knew that Aunt Flo should be paying me her monthly visit and figured it would happen on date night, of course.  I checked my period tracking app and...I was one day late. No big deal except for me it was. For the past 3-4 months {since we started TTC actually} I've been spotting for 3-4 days prior and I didn't have that this month.  And I normally start a day early if anything, not a day late.

I didn't think much of being "late" because, dude we only did it once!  So we carried on with our date night and when I mentioned it to Jimmy he said, "there's no way!".  I tried to convince him to stop and get a test on the way home {because I had gone through all 25 of my cheapies in 4 months} but he told me no.  Saturday, still no sign of Aunt Flo and I didn't "feel" like she was coming this month and so I took a test.

It came up positive almost immediately.  The "plan" of telling Jimmy in a really cute way with Kendall saying, "daddy I'm gonna be a big sister" with her cute Big Sister tee that I've had since August went out the window.  It's almost fitting for how this whole thing went down, really.  And it was truly God telling me that no matter what my plan is, His is the one that matters.

So we laughed.  We were shocked,confused, dumbfounded but most of all we were excited.  Jimmy was the first one to tell someone, he just couldn't wait.  We decided that night that we weren't going to wait like we did last time.  We knew that no matter what happened we wanted our friends and family to know and have their support and prayers so we spilled the beans immediately.

How is this pregnancy shaping up so far?  Well let's see, it seems like almost as soon as that stick turned positive I started to feel different.  Call it head games, call it what you will, but immediately I had the "full" feeling.  Like my uterus was heavy already.  Whatever that means.  Tuesday morning I woke up feeling a little queasy, something I did not get with Kendall, and had a lingering headache all day.  Same thing happened Wednesday but it seems like as soon as I eat it goes away.  Here's hoping that's always the case and that that symptom doesn't stick around for too long.

The big sister handled the news pretty well.  Although I'm not sure she gets it, I mean she keeps looking in my belly button for a baby, I think by the time Baby Dew #2 does arrive she will be prepared.  The first morning after we told her her first words to me were, "mommy, you have baby in your belly!".  And my heart melted.  She sometimes says she wants a brother but mostly she wants a "girlie baby, like mommy and Kendall" and she wants to name her Lucy.  At night when we say our prayers she kisses "the baby" and tells it she loves it and "see you later".

So my estimated due date, EDD, is August 15th.  For those of you that don't already know, Kendall's birthday is August 16th.  So...yeah...  I'll opt for a scheduled c-section {since KP was a c-section baby and a VBAC scares the living shit out of me} and so I'll most likely have him/her a week early.  It's really a minor detail when you look at the big picture.

I'm not sure if there will be weekly bumpdates or if I'll just do them on the fly, when something major happens but that's where we are today.  Thank you all so much for your well wishes and compliments on Tuesdays post. I truly have the best readers and I can't wait to share this journey with you all.