Baby #2 Update

How far along?  25 Weeks!

Size of baby M?  Baby W is the size of rutabaga

 

Total weight gain/loss: 15 pounds

Maternity clothes? Mostly.  Since it is spring, I'm still able to wear some skirts and dresses under my belly that aren't maternity.

Stretch marks?  None that weren't there before

Sleep:  ummmm, not so great.  I get tired of one side a lot quicker than before and lying on my back just makes me snore (which doesn't make for good sleep fore either Caleb or myself), not to mention getting up numerous times every night to pee.

Best moment this week: Having Emmy talk about the baby more than ever.  She has been talking to the baby, and rubbing lotion on the baby (aka my belly) and asks if the baby is kicking often.

Miss Anything? Still looking for some energy.  I do have some anemia which would explain the increased loss of energy, but I'm still trying to make myself get out and move even when I don't feel like it.

Movement: A lot.  Mostly around 9-10pm

Food cravings: water - I've just been so thirsty.

Anything making you queasy or sick: I'm still having to regulate my eating.  I can't eat but small amounts at a time (like, really small amounts) or I'll get indigestion.  I'm still nauseous at least once a day.  Thank God for Zofran!

Symptoms: headaches, nausea, tiredness

Happy or Moody most of the time: It is hit or miss I'm ashamed to say.  I try to remind myself often that I am pregnant and to think rationally.

Have you started to show yet: Oh yeah

Gender prediction:  I'm stuck.  I really have no idea and I don't really have a lot of time to think about it right now.

  

Labor Signs: Sadly yes.  I've had some contractions (not braxton hicks).  Some have been a little painful, but mostly just a lot of pressure.  My Dr. and I are following it closely though.  Rest seems to help, and they have gotten less frequent in the past week.
 

Belly Button in or out? In... for a little while longer.

Wedding rings on or off? On
 

Looking forward to: Emmy's 3rd birthday party next weekend!

Please excuse my appearance in the photo. We had just some home from a walk and the photo is really grainy, because Caleb was behind the camera (don't tell him I said that!).

Emmy's Life

Being a toddler is seems like so much fun.  You get to take naps everyday, and the rest of the time is spent playing.  However, for the parents of toddlers, it can seem like a day by day process of teaching, and disciplining, and answering the same questions that were answered the day before. 

I must say, that lately Emmy has seemed so much more grown up lately.  She surprises our whole family on a daily basis and I love getting to be her momma. 

Here's Emmy and Porter hanging out.  They get along so well and have so much fun together.

 

 Apparently they worked up an appetite

 

Having just one kid is pretty easy.  Especially when she is easily entertained.  I really love this snapshot of her one rainy afternoon.

She is such a little momma.  She jumps at any opportunity to help with any baby that is around, especially baby Blythe.  She's going to be just a good big sister!

 

And with all the sunny weather lately, we have really enjoyed spending afternoons at the pool.

 

I think she has more fun when daddy comes with us.

Speaking of swimming, Emmy got a new pet fish.  She named him Gamecock (which Caleb and I love!), and she is very diligent about feeding him everyday.

 

She is so intuitive and genuinely concerned for others.  I've been really tired lately and I guess I'm not good at hiding it because she'll randomly come up to me and say "Momma, you not feelin' good?"  "Is the baby kicking you?"  

She also loves to cuddle and asks us for a "hug and a kiss" before she goes to bed. 

I seriously can't get enough of this kid.  I hope the one that is brewing in me now is just like his or her sister.

Friday's Letters

Along with bringing back love it/shove it, I'd like to start the Friday's Letters that some other blogs are doing.  My BFF does it every Friday and from what I get from it, it is just a compilation of things that are on your mind, realizations, or events that have happened in the past week in a Dear Diary format.

Dear uterus, please stop contracting.  Not only does it hurt, but my baby needs to stay put for a while longer and I don't really want to be on bed rest.  Dear self-control, Where were you when I ate all those Oreos earlier?  Dear heat, I only like you when I'm at the pool.  Dear Laundry, why are you always staring at me?  Dear Memorial Day, since I have to work all weekend, I'm looking forward to you and all the yummy food I'll eat at the cookout we're having as well as getting to spend the day with my favorite soldier!

Love it & Shove it

I thought I'd bring back Love It and Shove It. 

Love It

* I love that I got to spend four days at home in a room last week.  One of those days, I was by myself the entire time and it was glorious!  Productivity and napping was at a record high for the year so far!

* The pool.  I'm so glad it is warm enough to enjoy the pool.

* Planning Emmy's third birthday party.  I'm so excited about it and so is she!  

Shove It

* being sun burnt and pregnant does not allow for quality sleep

* Ant bites.  Emmy is pretty allergic to ant bites.  Her entire affected extremity swells us really big for a few days whenever she gets one.  So far, it is only ant bites that we have noticed do this to her, but we have a lot of hydrocortisone cream and benedryl around our house these days!

* Laundry.  It never ends.  And the little one inside me is going to add so much more.

Our Recent Happenings

The Wilkes have been having a lot of fun lately.  Emmy has been living up the spring time with camping with her cousins, strawberry picking, playing outside, and hopefully soon, playing at the pool.  

Emmy is a fun-loving, strong-willed, energetic, but soft-hearted two year old.  She is so much like her dad and me and it is a joy to get to see the similarities each day.  If you ask her what she likes to do, she'll simply say "play all day!"  Oh, the life of a toddler.

In about month, my daughter will turn three and just three months after that, she'll be a sibling.  Life is taking some turns that we didn't expect, but we are rolling with it and love having Emmy with us.

With the beautiful weather out lately, I've gotten a few chances to photograph my girl.  Getting a mother/daughter photo is not gonna happen with this one for a while though.  Most of my photographs are me chasing her around and hoping to get a smile in between the outtakes.  

A few weeks ago, our family went strawberry picking.  It has become a tradition for us.  However, since we starting this tradition, Emmy will only eat strawberries from the field and not the ones in the containers from the grocery stores unless it is cooked in something.  Two-year old tendencies. 

 We started a behavior chart with Emmy a couple of weeks back.  My friend, Liz, gave me the idea - except mine is no where near as cool as hers.  Emmy gets a sticker each time she she completes a specific task that we ask her to (ie., eating her dinner without delay, going to bed without getting up numerous times, etc.),  and after 10 stickers, she gets to get a prize like a book or frozen yogurt with mommy and daddy, or a toy.  Her first prize was a bubble gun.  I got it from Target, and she loves it!  Caleb didn't think it was going to work, but it actually worked really well and it is so much better than blowing bubbles over and over again. 

 A fews ago, I had a photo shoot at the Horseshoe downtown and we saw Coach Spurrier and some guys from the team.  I told Emmy those were the gamecocks which she thought was so cool!  I asked Spurrier for a photo and this is what we got.  Not the best (I didn't even want to be in it, but Spurrier had an issue with holding a "baby"), but it is a pic of my girl and me with the Gamecocks coach.  Pretty epic in my book!