Randoms

Last night I stayed up until 3am cleaning and organizing.  Could I be nesting this early?

I finally took the plunge and bought baby #2's bedding (it's about time)

I'm too lazy to organize a yard sale, so with all the organizing and purging, I just throw things in trash bags to be hauled off to Goodwill.

Realization:  I have a ton of stuff I don't use!

Emmy is getting funnier by the day.  She is growing by leaps and bounds physically and mentally.  It is amazing.  Side note: She is now completely pacifier free!

I've realized, I'm going to look like a total hog at my 10 year high school reunion.  Ahhhh, memories.


Now, it's off to dreamland before I have to pull two consecutive 12-hour shifts again.  They are the reason my ankles are in hibernation.

Pregnancy #2 Update

How far along?  32 Weeks!

Size of baby?  According to Elizabeth, baby is 4lbs 10oz (or course, this is a computerized, guesstimate. 

Total weight gain/loss: *sheepishly* 23 pounds

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

Stretch marks?  None that weren't there before still

Sleep:  I'm tired all the time.  I could fall asleep almost anywhere.  I blame it on having to get up 5-6 times a night to pee.  It takes a lot just to get out of bed.  I kind of wish I had a maternity pillow, because when I'm lying on my side, the weight of my belly pulls on the rest of my body, so I end up having to put a pillow under it in order to be comfortable.  I don't remember having this problem with Emmy.

Movement: All the time - sometimes my entire body shakes when the baby is moving

Food cravings: water - I've just been so thirsty.  Grapes, and anything that has sugar in it! 

 

Anything making you queasy or sick: heartburn.  It sucks.

Symptoms: nausea, sleepiness, heartburn, increased swelling

Labor Signs: Still having contractions, but they are very irregular. Other than that, my hemoglobin is low, my heart rate is high, and my blood pressure is at a record low (like 80s/50s-60s).  
 

Belly Button in or out? flat

 Best moment this week: Finally getting a good 3D sonogram of the baby's face.

 

Miss Anything? having a waist and not swelling as soon as I get up in the morning.  My ankles are only at their normal size after being propped up for a few hours.

Wedding rings on or off? Off.  I got a new ring from QVC, that I actually love to wear, but it definitely isn't real
 

Looking forward to: setting up the nursery after we move in two weeks.

 

All photos taken by Elizabeth Neal

4th of July

Our 4th of July was low key.  We spent most of our time with family, outside, then inside dodging the random down pours, then outside again.  Emmy loved being with her cousins so much.  Any time the cousins are in town, all the kids get to stay up late, eat a bunch of junk food, and play whatever they want.  There is no schedule, just togetherness.

On the 4th, the kids swam and played on the slip n slide, captured itty bitty frogs, had a picnic on the top of the play set for lunch, and played with sparklers before the dads put on a fireworks show.

 

On the 5th, there was more of the same, except for more rain which meant playing in puddles.

 

After supper, we had ice cream on the dock while we watched the daddies fish unsuccessfully.

 

The kids always love being together and play so well with each other.  Next time we see the cousins, we will be a family of four!

Marriage - 6 years in

Yesterday was my sixth wedding anniversary.  After six years of dating and six years of marriage, lots of moving around, a three year old and a little one on the way, I will say that things are not the same that they were 12, 10, even 5 years ago.  Here are some things I've realized in the short time I've been married:

* A regular date night consists of kid free movie watching on the couch after the kids' bedtimes. 

* Romance is letting the other sleep in

* Love is not mentioning the 20lbs we've both gained since our wedding day

* Know which fights are worth your while and which are not

* A "night out" usually ends around 10pm, by choice

* "Getting to know each other" usually means asking what the next week's schedule looks like, how much money is in the budget, or what suggestions there are for dinner


Our life may seem mundane compared to what it was a few years ago, but I wouldn't trade it for the alternative.  I love knowing him better than anyone, having our future together to look forward to, raising our child(ren) together, and growing together. 

So here's to as many more years as God allows us together!

The third trimester begins

How far along?  29 Weeks!

Size of baby?  According to my personal sonographer, Elizabeth

  (not really), says that Baby W is 3.5 pounds already.  

 

Total weight gain/loss: *sheepishly* 20 pounds

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

Stretch marks?  None that weren't there before

Sleep:  pretty much the same - lots of getting up to pee and changing position due to be uncomfortable.

Best moment this week: When I came home from the doctor and showed Emmy and Caleb the ultrasound photos, Emmy said, "that's our girl!"  She is determined that it is a girl and seems to love the baby more and more every day.

Miss Anything? Ankles, my back not hurting, not feeling nauseous (yes, it is back - I think mostly due to heartburn), being able to move around freely without having to deal with moving around the belly and without abs, laying on my stomach - just to name a few.  

Granted, I don't want to seem unappreciative.  I know there are so many women who would love to be in my position and I do realize I'm very blessed.

Movement: All the time!

Food cravings: water - I've just been so thirsty.  And pretty much anything else that's not good for me!

Anything making you queasy or sick: Why yes.  I actually vomited today.  First time this pregnancy.  Emmy didn't really know what to think. 

Symptoms: nausea, sleepiness, heartburn, increased swelling

  

Labor Signs: Still having contractions, but they are very irregular. Other than that, my hemoglobin is low, my heart rate is high, and my blood pressure is at a record low (like 80s/50s-60s).  
 

Belly Button in or out? still in

Wedding rings on or off? On
 

Looking forward to: A little getaway with my hubby this weekend to celebrate our six year anniversary and then spending time with family next week for July 4th.

Belly photos taken my Caleb during our beach photo shoot.

Beach Bums

We spent last week at the beach with my parents.  Emmy has been talking about our yearly beach trip for two months, so she was rearing to to the water as soon as we got there.  

She had a blast.  She loved the water, the sand, playing with daddy, making sand castles, collecting seashells, looking for crabs...everything beach related. 

 

One evening we went out to the beach after taking naps and just explored.  This is the day that Emmy really started getting into searching for and collecting seashells.

 

She was so excited, so most of the photos I got were of her walking away from me.

 

Digging for the "good" shells.

 

I got tired of bending over to dig for shells, so I went to sit down on the dry sand and just watch and take pictures while Caleb and Emmy searched.  Whenever Emmy would find a different colored shell, she would run to me and laying them beside me for me to keep an eye on while she went back for more.

On our last night, we all went out to the beach before dinner for our second annual Steele family photo shoot.  It had been raining for a couple of hours before, but with it being our last day, I was determined to get photos on the beach (my dad and Caleb were not as determined, but they turned out to be such good sports).  We eventually decided to go out in the drizzling rain anyway.  I'm pretty happy with how the photos turned out, even with all the clouds.

 

Something was funny, but I can't remember what it was.

 

These two are so goofy together.

 

My pretty girl - two different edits

 

She's so active.  She would run into the water and then run back out screaming with excitement.

 

Our family of 3 (1/2)!