Pregnancy tracker: Weeks 7 & 8

Week 7







Size of baby: Baby is the size of a bluberry this week! Always been one of my most favorite foods:)

Weight gain: 0 lbs

Maternity Clothes: Nope

Stretch marks: No

Sleep: Sleeeppyyy. Doubt anything will change much in this category until baby D decides to start sleeping better....probably by then I will be getting into the uncomfortable stages of pregnancy where I can't sleep anyways! lol Oh well babies are worth it:)

Food cravings: My nausea comes and goes, but thankfully it's never too bad just makes it hard to find something that sounds good! What I've been craving lately seems to be sweets especially fruit! I did make a run to Eileen's Cookies the other day bc I couldn't get those off my mind for several days. Cheese and crackers have been on the list as well as chocolate milk!

Symptoms: Nausea and being tired are main thing this week.

Best moment this week: We got to see our baby on ultrasound middle of this week and it was awesome. I was trying to be calm while waiting at my appt, but after my past experiences I almost couldn't help being a bundle of nerves. When they finally turned on the u/s machine and we could almost immediately see the babies heart beating I can't explain the relief and joy that overcame me. Seemed surreal to have the dr saying everything looks good and babies heartbeat is strong...how long I have waited to hear those words! I just can't praise God enough for this answered prayer.

Gender: Obviously I still don't know. And obviously with 2 little boys already I would love to have a girl...but for some reason I keep thinking I'm gonna have another boy. Either way we will be thrilled. Three brothers running around my home sounds just fine to me as well:) I still want a daughter eventually if it's in God's will and believe it or not we are probably not done adding to our family after this baby. I think we are done having biological children, but we hope to possibly adopt again 1 more time down the road, so maybe I'll still have my daughter even if it's not this go around!

Movement: Not yet.

What I miss: I do miss coffee this week especially when one of the boys has me up at 5:50 for the day! I will probably enjoy the occasionally coffee once I'm out of the 1st trimester...I'm just a rule follower in pregnancy, so when they reccomend no caffeine then I listen.

What I'm looking forward to: We get to go for a follow up ultrasound in less than 2 weeks! They wanted me to come sooner just to make sure everything is still progressing normally and that baby is growing on track. I look forward to seeing my baby again already bc this may be my last one till 18-20 weeks bc I'm passing on the 'nuchal translucency' ultrasound screening they do around 12 weeks to screen for abnormalities such as Down syndrome.


Week 8:








Snapped a pic at my moms house after we drove down for a Sunday lunch. This is mostly a bump from eating a big meal lol..but soon it will be growing quickly!

Size of baby: raspberry!

Weight gain: 0 lbs..not for lack of eating! Lol taking care of two kids burns a lot of calories during the day though! I'm still wiped out at the end of each day...Need some 2nd trimester energy!

Maternity Clothes: Nope

Stretch marks: no

Sleep: 2 nights earlier this week baby D only woke 1 or 2 times at night... so I actually got about a 4-5 hr stretch of sleep! It was awesome! However he is now back to waking more often, so it was temporary, but ill take it:)

Food cravings: This week switched to some sour cravings- I've eatin 2 raw lemons- I always liked lemon squeezed in stuff, but have never had the desire to just eat them plain until now. Yum though! Also pickles still! Finished off another jar this week. Oh and kiwis.. I bought a big sack of those:)

Symptoms: Symptoms kind of faded this week..which was scary for me bc this is the week I lost both babies the past 2 times. I don't know if maybe it was just my mind playing tricks on me bc the following week(9) my nausea and sore boobs were back! I read online that its not uncommon for symptoms to come and go though.

Best moment this week: the very end of this week we had our follow up u/s at 8 wks 6 days. Everything still looked great! My midwife just used a small portable ultrasound machine, so my pics aren't that clear, but baby was wiggling around and we could see the heart pumping strong.

Gender: ?

Movement: not yet

What I miss: I miss sleep currently.
Which is humorous bc it's going to be a looong time before there's much of that around here!

What I'm looking forward to: At the moment just enjoying today, but if course I can't wait to feel movement and find out boy/girl..so I can start looking out for nursery items!


Our little bean this past week!<3 data-blogger-escaped-br="">

Sleepy times:)

Breyton hasn't been feeling too well this week and has been  making different requests for where he wants to sleep so I've let him sleep wherever..if he is actually going to take a nap or go to bed easy I don't care where it is:)


 Here he is having a campout in his bedroom floor one night. He wanted to break out the teepee and sleeping bag....he said he was safe from coyotes in there lol.

This is him cuddled up in mom and dads bed at nap time!

Napping under baby D's crib..he kept saying it was bunk beds. He can't wait to have bunk beds with D down the road:)

Sunday afternoon nap with momma in the big chair. This is one of the few moments where everyone in our house was asleep at the same time. Blissful. Rare occasion that Breyton naps and at the same time as D.

And my little angel sleeping in the car...love him!

My nursery inspiration!

I know it's all still far away, but I can't help thinking about and planning out the nursery! Can't blame a girl.

Even after we find out boy or girl in May I won't be able to do anything with getting a nursery ready till I'm about 34/35 weeks pregnant..bc that's when we move into the new house-if it stays on schedule. Which should be interesting considering Breyton was born a little early at 38 weeks...I'll hope this baby gives me at least 2-3 weeks to get somewhat settled into the new house.

Any ways I've been saving my favorite ideas for each gender and that way I can at least have a plan and gather some things before we move in possibly...

If baby Long is a girl I've picked this color scheme(pictures below) these inspiration ideas will be recreated on a small budget since we are building lol.

-Love the mint/aqua wall color with the bright accent colors...this was the color my room was done in as a baby:)
-I already have that exact Jenny Lind crib which D is currently using, but I'll switch him to Breyton's old crib when we move bc it is bigger anyways. I found the crib for $20 on Craigslist-not a bad deal!
-I plan to sew the crib skirt myself...that way I can pick out whatever color and pattern I want, plus save money.
-The 'Pom pom's' above crib are a must. They shouldn't be too expensive bc they are DIY.
I look forward to finding more DIY ideas or thrift/antique store shopping for frames and other wall decor!

                                             Love the pom poms and the banner here!

 

Boy nursery ideas are not so set for me...probably bc I'm already planning out the big boys room in the new house so my main ideas are used.

I do love the colors in these rooms below:

This room below has the same exact color of furniture I already have from Breyton's baby room...I like the color scheme with the dark brown wood. Though not big on the solar system theme I would probably prefer a 'map' theme with world maps and globes for the accent pieces.

 

 

I like the natural tones of greys, brown, and twine globes hanging from ceiling in this room as well...

                             Then this DIY canvas idea I saw on pinterest is super cute....could do any print on it-just cut out cloth shapes and mod podge!
                                                            

Pregnancy tracker: Week 9 and 10

Well I decided I better keep track of this pregnancy since it's always fun to compare to when I was pregnant with Breyton:) I started answering these questions at 4 weeks and thought I'd start posting them! Plus, I plan to make a pregnancy book for this baby, so I can look back on these posts to make it...because I'm not as good at keeping the handwritten journal. The whole chalkboard idea is overused, but I haven't had the energy to come up with anything original...so it will serve its purpose. Anyways here is week 9 & 10! Excited to watch my belly grow:)

Week 9

                                                Breyton ran in and photo bombed this pic:)

Size of baby:Ok so thebump.com said an olive...apparently when I took the chalkboard pic I saw grape on another site. Same thing:)



Weight gain: 0 lbs

Maternity Clothes: Nope-my jeans are definitely feeling snug. Strange bc I have not gained any weight.

Stretch marks: no

Sleep: The same as past weeks pretty much...

Food cravings: Mexican food. Fruit. Cereal. Burgers. Also ate a fresh spinach and strawberry salad one day this week at 9:45 am lol...weird considering how repulsive that sounded the past 2 weeks. Lastly anything lime/salty-limeades, virgin frozen margarita's are a must have around here this week.

Symptoms: Some 'growing pains' or stretching in my pelvis area. Very sore boobs and some nausea still here and there.

Best moment this week: Everything is still going great and with each week that passes I can sigh with relief and thank God that we've made it this far!

Gender: ?

Movement: not yet

What I miss: nothing really...I've been majorly craving the lemonade they made in Mexico when we were on vaca..it just can't be recreated and that(and the beaches) I do miss dearly!!!

What I'm looking forward to: All the usual baby stuff:) My next appt is several weeks away. On a non-pregnancy related note we get to go to the 'design center' which is the next step in our house building process. After that appointment when all those details are finalized they will finally break ground! Yay!:)

WEEK 10

Size of baby: Prune...My uterus is now the size of a grapefruit however, so I'm feeling the slight bulge. Though I think at this point it's still mostly a little bloat and that I no longer hold my tummy in:)



Weight gain:  I had gained 1 lb....then second day into this week morning sickness or in my case ALL freakin day sickness kicked in out of nowhere. I really though I was in the clear:/ I have been soo sick all this week though and have trouble finding anything I can eat. I've been trying to drink Breyton's pediasure lol and eat whatever I can even if its bad stuff.

Maternity Clothes: not yet...jeans where feeling a little snug. About to be buttoning them with a rubberband for comfort!

Stretch marks: no..I didn't get any with Breyton, so hopefully none this time.

Sleep: Slept a little better this week! Baby D has been waking once or twice a night, so it's been a little better still. Though Breyton was sick this week and therefore woke me up about once a night out of discomfort. Poor fella.

Food cravings: I've been so nauseous..when I have craved something it's been potatoes, fruit, and bread stuff.

Symptoms: Just when you think symptoms should be fading mine decide to really start up lol.. This is the sickest I've been with any of my pregnancies by far.

Best moment this week: It's been kind of a hard week, but I really stay focused on how blessed we truly are. I will take this sickness any day bc the end result is worth it. I could say on a positive note I think this means my hormones are going strong and so is baby bc I'm definitely feeling it!

Gender: ?

Movement: not yet

What I miss: I miss being productive lol. I mean there's not a lot of taking it easy going on between both boys, but the housework and cooking dinner has been suffering bc I can't do it all feeling like this and on little sleep.

What I'm looking forward to: Looking forward to having more energy:) Also, our next appt is about 2 weeks away and can't wait to hear the heartbeat again.

The 'other' woman. ( In foster care that is:)

Yesterday was a frustrating afternoon for me. I drove over 2 hours round trip, including sitting in a huge traffic jam, to take D to a supervised visit with his mom yesterday....for her to not show.

In ways it's more difficult than I imagined. Foster care/adoption that is..not in the way I would have originally thought, but in the sense that your heart is torn. You have this child in your care that you quickly grow to love EQUALLY as your own while there's the 'other woman'.

The bio mom of course.

I didn't expect with D's particular case to meet her other than possibly in court. However, here I am learning too much about the mom that baby D will likely never know as mom. I feel deeply sorry for her, but at the same time my heart aches for what's best for her 5 babies. That doesn't mean I don't want her to change around because above all else I would love for anyone, including her, to know Christ and experience the radical life altering love He has for her. However, I feel with out a doubt that the best thing for D is that he stay with us.

 Not just because we love him and want him to stay with us forever.

Because I look at his sweet innocent face and I see the hard places his parents come from. The lifestyles choices they make are going to be an unbelievably hard pattern to break if he were to be with his mom and in the area she is in...it would be near impossible for he or his siblings to have any opportunity to rise above that. I want so much more for him I can't bear the thought of him ending up as a 'statistic' and following in their foot steps.

Now I'm not here saying that God isn't capable of performing miraculous miracles.....I am saying that I believe a person has to have a willing heart to let God bring about change and I don't feel at this time that is a very probable for his mom.

After yesterday afternoon I had to turn up Jesus in the car (through Christian radio:) to be able to get back in a more grace filled mind set because I was mad. Mad after seeing the heartbreak in her older children's faces who don't have the privelege of not knowing what's going on. Mad at the whole situation and the long wait ahead of us. It's not my job to be mad though....it's my job to love D unconditionally without seeing what the future holds. It's my job to earnestly pray for this woman who desperately needs God's love and healing. It's my job (to try) to unbiasedly pray for whatever God's will may be.

Then yesterday evening there was a little redemption. A picture perfect evening ....one of those times you want to permanently capture in your mind. Mason was home on his dinner break, the weather could not have been more beautiful, sitting outside, Breyton chasing bubbles and popping them, D in his new exersaucer bouncin and laughing just as happy as can be, new life growing in my belly, and those are the moments my 'cup overflows' and I see how all this 'hard' stuff is worth it. Especially if that's what it takes to see D- a sweet smiley content baby on my porch and in our arms safe and sound.

Dad of the year! Just a brag post:)

Mason has just been truly amazing as we've moved in a short time from one child to 2...and then expecting #3! And it has been far from the traditional way of adding to your family. Not too many men could do it so calmly lol. So I want to give him the credit he deserves for all the hard work and love he shows for us...plus maybe I can re-read this when he does something that annoys me;)

He has been so helpful as we've navigated having a very active toddler, a 5 month old, and the added chaos of getting through the 1st trimester of this pregnancy! All while working extra hours at work.

For as long as I can remember I had wanted to adopt and it was so important for my future husband to be able to share in this desire. It's been so amazing to watch as God moved in Masons heart and how he so easily took on the role of being D's father. Mason has loved him equally and as his own....though to me this seemed to just be expected I don't want to take for granted how blessed I am to have him be the father of our children.

Then before we had even came close to being settled with adding D to our family..we find out I'm expecting:) For some men this could have caused a nervous breakdown lol....but truly from the moment I told him 'the news' he was very excited to find out I was pregnant. Always reassuring me that everything would be fine. He helped keep me calm, as my already sleep deprived self, came to grasps with the fact that we were going to have 5 people in a 2 bedroom apartment! (Thankfully Mason started working really hard on finding us land to build a house, and God showed us right to the land, shortly after the news--so we should be moved right before baby #3 is here:)

Our life together is more than I could have ever imagined and I'm so grateful God placed us together! He truly is the best father and these 3 precious babies of ours are so very lucky to have him!

I have some really cute pics of him and the boys, but of course I can't share most of them right now if baby D is in them....here's a few anyways:)

                                                              He's pretty sexy too:)

Pregnancy tracker: Weeks 4-6:)

Well I'm just so blessed to be pregnant again and look forward to keeping track of weekly happenings through this blog. I'm already behind, but I wanted to keep track from the get go so I'll get caught up to my current week soon!

I hope to eventually use this 'journal' of this pregnancy to make a book for our future son/daughter. I have one for when I was pregnant with Breyton and can't wait to compare and see the differences between pregnancies. Anyways I'll probably always answer these same weekly questions and add some as we go:) Here's the first few weeks of finding out I was expecting this little bundle of joy!


 4 WEEKS

 

Size of baby: According to 'Thebump.com' our baby is a poppyseed right now.



Weight gain: 0lbs

Maternity Clothes: Nope

Stretch marks: I didn't get any with Breyton so hopefully won't this time.

Sleep: Feeling fairly exhausted. Guess that's to be expected when you are growing a little person....while waking up with a 5 month old at night an chasing a 3 yr old all day!

Food cravings: I consider it a craving if it's the only thing that sounds good at the time and I want it often! So far- fresh homemade salsa is top of the list. Pizza. Ice-cream.

Symptoms: Tired! Verryy sore boobs. Occasionally nauseous. Thankful that for signs that I am pregnant:)

Best moment this week:Finding out I'm pregnant! Even though we weren't preventing this month and had been trying for so long I just was soo suprised. I really had peace the past few months where I could move on with our foster/adoption journey. Fully didn't expect to see those 2 lines. Immediate praise to God for always having a plan greater than mine with unexpected joys!

Gender: ?


Movement: Not yet.

What I miss: Nothing yet! Just happy to be pregnant!

What I'm looking forward to:So much! I guess we can start with our first ultrasound in about 3-4 weeks and hearing our babies heartbeat. Trying to enjoy every moment even during this 'stressful' and tiring first trimester.





5 WEEKS





Size of baby: Currently a little apple seed and growing rapidly!


Weight gain: 0lbs

Maternity Clothes: Nope

Stretch marks: Nope

Sleep: I'm tired all the time it seems, but I also don't get to sleep much at night..due to a baby and having the flu. I'm always up coughing or can't breathe due to congestion:/

Food cravings: Cutie pie oranges! I've ate so many today I've lost count. Also, Strawberry spinach salads and pizza still!

Symptoms:  The same- except the nausea is starting to kick in stronger! Never actually threw up with B so far the case this time.

Best moment this week: Having the flu made this a rough week...but Baby D officially got placed with us and everything with pregnancy appears to be going just fine:) Can't ask for too much more!!

Gender: ?

Movement: Not yet.

What I miss: Possibly coffee because im so exhausted lol I don't even have it often in non-pregnant state...but this week I crave it every morning!

What I'm looking forward to: Everything! Can't wait to watch my belly grow and feel movement especially!



6 WEEKS



 Size  of baby: Our little sweet pea<3



Maternity Clothes: Nope

Stretch marks: No

Sleep: Not very good this week-so nothing new! Baby D has been waking up every 2-3 hours, so kinda makes quality sleep hard to come by lol. All in all I survive well on little sleep so I'll make it!

Food cravings: So I guess I'm going to be cliche and say pickles, but seriously I've ate an entire jar just this week! Yum:) Also, potatoes in any form-bake potato, fries, potato chips, mashed potatoes, you name it! Oh and I've been enjoying blueberries/blackberries all week as well.

Symptoms: Still the same ones. Also, added feeling 'round ligament pains' or stretching pains.

Best moment this week:Every week I get more excited and the news just sinks in more. Can't wait for everything(except for more sleepless nights)! I'm just one of those people who loves being pregnant:)

Gender: ?

Movement: Not yet.

What I miss: Nothing really this week. Just happy!

What I'm looking forward to: Still excited for 1st u/s and hearing heartbeat. Also, looking forward to announcing to everyone(other than family/close friends)the blessed news!

Cancun(January) 2013

Ya I know its been well over a month since our vacation and I never got around to posting about our trip. I don't have much time still between the kiddos and everything else, so I'll keep it short:) We had a wonderful time and I'm so grateful we got this opportunity to get away one last time before life became really crazy!

I think I said before it did rain the first 2 days we were there, like a monsoon downpour, all day long! We enjoyed the hot tub and the malls down there so fun was still had....though we were all anxious to get some beach time!!!  Then we had 3 days of beautiful sunshine and enjoyed soaking up hours at the beach everyday. You can never quite replace the feel of the sun on your skin and the sound of God's amazing ocean crashing on shore.

Anyways I'll just post some pictures and the trip can describe itself:) Oh and these are just the pics off of my camera miss Danielle had close to 500 on her professional camera!

 

                             Watchin a movie on one of the plan rides!

                              View from our balcony...clouds rolling in!

First time down at the beach...though it started sprinkling so there is a water drop on the camera lens lol.

                                          Breyton painting at the 'kids club'!

                                                             Bout to head to the mall!

                                                                 Sand castle time!

                                                           In front of the mall.

                                       Breyton and daddy playing in the waves!

                                    
The lovely Danielle....blessed she came along...and for her photography while there! lol

                                        Right after sunset and the moon was out...

                              Daddy reading his Bible one night and B chillin beside!

                                                        My handsome hubby:)

                                                                  Danielle and I!

                First time to order room service so Mason had to break out the robe lol.

Big pelicans would just fly right by us all the time and we could watch them dive in the water for fish!

                                                              Enjoying some sun!

                                                                Breakfast...yum!

                                               Danielle and B chillin in the hot tub!

                     He loved playing with the sea shells he and dad found in the ocean!

Japanese restaurant one night for dinner....B enjoyed watching them cook in front of us and the food there was the best we had all trip!!

                                                        Eating lunch...with a great view!!

                                                               Being goofy!!!

 

Breyton sleeping soundly on his big bed he had to himself...love him!

                   Holding moms pink beach bag and ready to go to the beach NOW!!

                                 
                                                      B's name in a wall of sand.

                                          

                                                     Us girls ready for dinner one night!