thankful.

tomorrow is 37 weeks. Full term-- ish. We did it. And I am so thankful for that. 

this weekend was my second baby shower and saying I left feeling thankful would be the understatement of the century. Not only did all of the presents not fit in our car, friends and family drove from miles to come support me and this precious little boy. It was truly overwhelming, and I felt nothing short of loved.

It's funny how has kids you really don't appreciate much of what your parents do or teach you or how you really have no idea how their influence on your life is shaping you into this person that you might someday be. My parents are wonderful, supportive and always loving who have taught me more than I could ever write a blog post about, but it hasn't been since being pregnant that has made me realize the things they taught me has stuck with me and how thankful I am to them for their hard work in raising us.

I know, pretty cliche..but really it's true. 

My mom has always taught us to be thankful, count your blessings, and to have a Pollyanna attitude. 

( For those of you who haven't seen this movie, please stop what you are doing and watch it now, dorky yes..but fun and worth your time..very much so.) Her attitude in the movie is simply to see the best in life and in every situation. Though I'm not always very good at this being raised with my mom I can usually hear her in the back of my head constantly saying " My pollyanna attitude is coming but..." and she would name one blessing or positive thing in whatever circumstance we were in. I think being thankful is a choice and we must choose it, even in hardships. So as I thinking about that this morning and  I was praying that the Lord would make me a more thankful woman, wife and mother. I was praying that my child would grow up in a thankful home that chooses joy and love, even when we don't want too. 

God works in beautiful ways because as I was praying for that I got an email from my mother in law who sent me the link to this blog

A Holy Experience

and of course what was the topic: thankfulness. 

Some days I'm thankful for the bigger things, electricity, good health, running water, shelter and warmth, my family...

Some days its easy to be thankful for the "small" things, coffee and tea in cute mugs with good books, warm fuzzy socks, the beauty of winter, chocolate, fun movies and baby socks.

Today, I am just thankful for it all.. Life and joy, the cross and my salvation, the assurance I have in Christ and the hope of an eternity with Him. I'm thankful for a messy house full of baby supplies, those strong baby kicks which make it impossible not to use the bathroom every hour. 

I know my days will soon be so different, filled with new things, dirty diapers and so much of the unknown. I want to be thankful for it all, I want to embrace this new change and find grace and beauty in those hard moments. I want to snuggle my baby and thank God for him everyday. I want to love my husband well while learning my new role as a mother. Above all I want to glorify God and praise Him each day for this beautiful life He has given me.
my prayer today is that my home will be filled of thankful hearts and spirits that choose joy, even though we fail everyday.

today, I'm just simply thankful. And I'm thankful for a mom who has continued to show me what it looks like to have a "Pollyanna" attitude.

Umm, 36 weeks??

oops. 

I forgot my 36 week update this week. It was sort of another hard week physically and emotionally so I think it just slipped my mind. Not to mention I have been busy preparing a certain little boys room. 

baby A will be here before we know it and call me insane, but suddenly I'm wondering how it came so fast. Pregnancy has felt like the longest journey of my entire life and now I realize we only have 4 weeks left. 

I had my appointment on Wednesday and baby boy is doing great. My nurse and midwife could not believe how LOW his head was and she was pleased that my body seems to be doing exactly what it's suppose to do in preparing for labor. She said it really doesn't mean anything because you never know but the fact that his head is already so low is a great sign and she really doubts I will make it to my due date. I'm trying my hardest to keep that out of my mind though. These waiting days are some of the hardest as the thought of holding my sweet little boy gets closer and closer. Every night my dreams are filled with giving birth or bringing him home, and my thoughts during the day are often filled with trying to picture his face. So I am still telling myself that we could have 5 weeks left and most likely this will be an April baby!

Either way we are staying busy over here with putting together a nursery, hanging out with our friends, having baby showers, and trying to figure out what else needs to be done before he gets here. 

Currently he is being a show off again and practicing his wrestling moves. My stomach is completely lopsided and he has his limbs sticking out all over. I think my baby boy is getting pretty squished. 

:)

35 weeks!

35 weeks friends.. can I just say HOW wonderful that is. 

getting so close..

Today is: February 26, 2013

How far along: 35 weeks

Baby is the size of: A honeydew! About 17.5-19" and 4.5-5.5 lbs.

What's going on with the babe: From now on, baby boy is in the plumping up department. Though he won't get much longer, he'll put on a pound or more of baby fat before birth. His hearing is totally developed. His kidneys are fully developed now, and his liver can process some waste products. Most of his basic physical development is now complete, and he'll spend the next few weeks putting on weight.

What's going on with the mama: Uncomfortable. But also have entered such a different stage of pregnancy. As uncomfortable as I can be it can be fun to watch my stomach go completely lopsided from this crazy baby. Having my husband help me off the couch or tie my shoes, and feeling these strong intense movements just make me laugh most days. We are in the home stretch and I can definitely feel it!

Baby is a: Boy!

Maternity clothing: Yeah, mostly. Some non-maternity, but very little.

Sleep: Not great most days but nothing I can complain about! With the help of some great essential oils I can usually go from about 10-3 because I start tossing and turning, that is great as far as I'm concerned!

Movement: Big, jabby movements. He is still crazy, always.

Cravings/Aversions: With baby boy much bigger my appetite hasn't been great these days, last week I felt like I was back in first trimester where everything made my stomach turn and no food tasted good. Cereal is still my go to meal at any time of the day...

Symptoms:
- Sciatic nerve pain. Thankfully only a few days here and there.
- Aches.  Like you wouldn't believe.
- Fatigue.   Lots of naps for this girl!
- Low appetite.  Very much so!
- Heartburn.  I keep those tums extremely close.
- Shortness of breath.  :)
- Frequent potty breaks. :)
- Itchy, dry skin.  This week its been worse than others!

If somebody would have told me..

That I would throw up every day for 27 out of the 40 weeks

And then would continue to deal with on and off sickness after that..

that emotionally I would feel weak and drained

that my body would ache and most days I would feel so exhausted

that sleep would soon become more of a challenge then a peaceful time

that I would experience some of the weirdest pain I've ever had

if somebody would have told me that overall I would hate pregnancy..

I would have still gotten pregnant, and I would do it a hundred times over.

One day I won't remember those things, instead I will remember 

hearing your heartbeat for the first time, feeling that first movement at 4am, which would later turn out to be your favorite time to dance, I will remember those kicks becoming stronger and stronger, the first time your daddy felt those kicks, I will remember washing your clothes, putting together your dressers and planning out your sweet nursery. I will remember reading you books while you bounced around. I will remember seeing your handsome face on the ultrasound, remember finding out you were indeed a boy..

and I will remember that these weren't the weeks that were so hard on me, but instead.. my sweet baby boy I will remember that these hard days were the all the moments that I started to fall completely in love with you. 

6 more weeks, I can't wait to hold you so tight.

34 weeks.

6 weeks left.

I am doing my best to be positive, enjoy every minute and remember that this season in my life will soon pass but today friends, I am worn and completely exhausted of being pregnant. 

so I'm going to pray, love this little guy with all my heart and start the countdown till his arrival. 

I was up most the night and today I'm just feeling a little defeated. 

thankfully I have cute little baby clothes to put in a dresser and beautiful maternity pictures to keep me smiling. Not to mention a crazy, wiggly little boy who reminds me constantly how much I love him.

 Soon this little guy will be here and I know it will all be worth it. 

33 weeks

Today is: February 12, 2013

How far along: 33 weeks

Total weight gain: Still hanging at about 17 pounds.

Baby is the size of: A pineapple! About 17.5-18.5" and 4.5-5.5 lbs.

What's going on with the babe: Baby boy is keeping his eyes open while he's awake now, starting to coordinate breathing with sucking and swallowing, his bones are hardening, and he's going through major brain development!

What's going on with the mama: There's a little waddling going on these days with some achy bones and a back that gives me so. many. problems!

Baby is a: Boy!

Maternity clothing: Yeah, mostly. Some non-maternity, but very little.

Sleep:  I have always been a person who loves to sleep and has never had any problems doing so..it's a new adjustment for me to lay in bed and not be able to fall asleep! Mostly I can't complain though, I am getting quite a few good hours in every night in between the tossing and turning and the babe doing dance moves!

Movement: My little man is as active as ever....

Cravings/Aversions:Cereal, cereal, cereal.

Symptoms:
- Sciatic nerve pain. None this week!
- Aches.  All day, all night!
- Fatigue.  Some days are better than others!
- Low appetite. I'm finding it best to eat small meals all day and avoid big meals at once!
- Heartburn. Last week this was a killer. Every day was constant horrible heartburn and nothing seemed to help, thankfully these last few days it has subsided some and its not so bad!
- Shortness of breath.  Lots of that! 

This last week hasn't been the easiest, I've had multiple days of being sick and some days I am just so tired of throwing up. However, this week has also had way more fun things to keep me encouraged and distracted. We took our maternity pictures, had my first baby shower and even spent an evening together organizing his room a little!
All of those things were very sweet and got me very excited for this little boys arrival. My baby shower was thrown by my friends from Church and these ladies sure know how to make me feel loved. It was full of my favorite things and they all went in and got us our stroller and car seat. Which is now sitting in the living room..I guess we should find a place for it. :) A snow storm that day kept many of them at home including my mother in law but I guess that is how Wisconsin weather goes. I'm just happy everyone stayed home and safe!

Tonight when K gets home from work we are headed to hopefully pick up his dressers and then I can start washing and putting away clothes. That will be so exciting.

So once again even though most days being pregnant is not my favorite thing, this week has reminded me just how special carrying this precious child is. I just can't believe how much I already love my sweet boy and how blessed I feel to be his mom. I would gladly take another 33 weeks of bathroom trips, aching bones, out of control hormones, sleepless nights and this constant discomfort just be his mommy.

 

7 more weeks little man..I can't wait to kiss that face of yours.

32 weeks

Today is: February 5th 2013

How far along: 32 weeks

Total weight gain: guessing about 16-17 pounds!

Baby is the size of: About 16 inches long and weighs close to 4 pounds!

What's going on with the babe:   My sweet boy will gain half of his birth weight in the next 7 weeks as he fattens up for living outside the womb! He now has toenails, fingernails and real hair.. (if baby boy will have any hair..)

What's going on with the mama: Still chuggin' along.. 

Baby is a: Boy!

Maternity clothing: Yeah, mostly. Some non-maternity in larger sizes.

Sleep:With a sick husband at home most of this last week sleep was not very good but I think we are mostly over that now and the last couple nights we have both slept very well!
Praise God!

Movement: Still so many big movements! I'm enjoying these last few weeks of feeling him kick and jab although lately, he has been very strong and sometimes he hurts his Momma! It is always most fun for me when other people can feel him! I love watching the expression on my brothers face, he is always so shocked!

 

Cravings/Aversions: Pretty much the same..give me carbs, fruit and cereal!!!

 

Symptoms:

- Sciatic nerve pain.   None this week!

- Aches.  All over.
- Fatigue.  Has been better this week
- Frequent potty breaks.  :)
- Some pressure.  He has been moving around more and giving me some relief but once and awhile it still gets very uncomfortable!
- Braxton Hicks contractions.  Only a few this week!
- Shortness of breath. Only when I go up and down stairs.

- Leg cramps.  None this week!
-Heart Burn:  Currently my throat feels like its on fire....

I see my midwife tomorrow for my 32 week appointment and I am so thankful the end is in sight. This is a very exciting week for us as we took maternity pictures and I will be having my first baby shower! I'm trying to stay busy so the days go fast. Although if Daddy and I don't get moving on baby boys nursery we will want the days to slow down! We still have nothing done in there and its one big mess! I need to get going and start organizing! My least greatest talent in this world. :)