23 Week Survey-Baby O #2

How far along? 23 weeks
Total weight gain/loss: Up 1 lbs. this week.  156 lbs-- 15 lbs. total.  At this point with Graydon I had already gained 20 lbs. Getting closer!
How big is baby? And now that she's more than 11 inches long and weighs just over a pound (about as much as a large mango), you may be able to see her squirm underneath your clothes. Blood vessels in her lungs are developing to prepare for breathing, and the sounds that your baby's increasingly keen ears pick up are preparing her for entry into the outside world.  - Baby Center
Maternity clothes?  Yes, but still wearing regular shirts as well. My favorite outfits are more fitting, or if I am wearing sweaters I wear a belt above my belly. And boots of course...and a scarf! :)
Sleep: Awesome! I haven't had to get up to use the bathroom in a couple weeks.  I seem to wake up and be on my back a lot, but I'm able to fall right back asleep. Using a wedge and pillow between my knees to stay comfortable and it works well.
Best moment this week:  Hanging out with Lyn on Thursday evening and making some Harvest Chili!  Friday I looked around for some nursery ideas. In the afternoon I did some baking...a pumpkin pie, a pumpkin roll and some pumpkin muffins with chocolate chips in them! YUM. Saturday was Sweetest Day and Chris got me some yummy chocolates from this place called MaryAnn's.  We went to see his parents and Aunt and had dinner with them at Red Lobster. Yes, I got the endless shrimp. Yes, it was AMAZING. hahaha. Then afterward we watched the game and unfortunately MSU lost to U of M. But the dessert was amazing and worth all the hard work.
Movement: Yep. She is kicking me like crazy.
Food cravings: Chocolate, spicy foods like buffalo wings, orange juice, coffee, fruit.
Food aversions:  Some meats and vegetables.
Gender: Precious baby girl!
Labor Signs: Nada
Symptoms:  Being tired on and off and sore breasts.
Belly Button in or out? Still in.
Wedding rings on or off?  Still on and for a long time hopefully. :)
Stretchmarks? The ones around my belly button are starting to become more noticeable. 
How are you feeling? Pretty good! Tired sometimes, especially by bedtime, but I have a great amount of energy now which I LOVE. Gotta love 2nd tri. :)
 What I am looking forward to: Going home and checking out the bedding that I ordered...it was supposed to be delivered today...hopefully I like it!  Getting my hair done on Wednesday and going shopping with my coworker Nancy to the Michigan City outlet mall on Friday! Can't wait!!!!
What I miss:  Having normal energy and working out.
Weekly Wisdom: Rest when you can.
Milestones:  Just the baby getting bigger. One more week until viability.
Pregnancy Moments with Chris and others:  Sunday there were some people at the Marathon ( I was just rooting people on) that had no idea I was pregnant. I am still decently small in person I guess..plus I was wearing a hoodie. It was kind of funny!

22 Weeks-Baby Ostie #2

How far along? 22 weeks
Total weight gain/loss: 3 lbs. this week. Making up for last week. 155 lbs-- 14 lbs. total.  At this point with Graydon I had already gained 20 lbs. And at this same point in my pregnancy last time, I had gained 0 lbs. last week and 3 lbs. at week 22, just like this pregnancy...interesting! (To me anyways, lol.)
How big is baby? At 11 inches (the length of a spaghetti squash) and almost 1 pound, your baby is starting to look like a miniature newborn. His lips, eyelids, and eyebrows are becoming more distinct, and he's even developing tiny tooth buds beneath his gums. His eyes have formed, but his irises (the colored part of the eye) still lack pigment.  - Baby Center
Maternity clothes?  Yes, but  mostly regular shirts still.
Sleep: Awesome! I haven't had to get up to use the bathroom in a couple weeks.  I seem to wake up and be on my back a lot, but I'm able to fall right back asleep. Using a wedge and pillow between my knees to stay comfortable and it works well. (Just checked back again on my 22 wk blog post with Graydon, and I wrote the same thing about how I kept waking up on my back. Once again, so weird and interesting!)
Best moment this week:  It's been a lot of fun talking with friends/family/coworkers about us having a girl! Friday afternoon my good friend Lauren came over and I haven't seen her in a while so that was nice. That evening to took Graydon to the mall. I got a Pandora bead for my bracelet, for baby girl. I love it! We also got a couple of Holiday shirts from Kohl's for Graydon. Saturday I did this walk with my friend Kerri from work.  It was nasty out and raining hard but we bundled up with our umbrellas and hot Starbucks PSLs and had some good girl time while we walked. I got a lot of stuff done around our house that day too. Sunday was pretty relaxed!
Movement: Yep. She is kicking me like crazy.
Food cravings: Chocolate, orange juice, cereal, hearty foods, coffee.
Food aversions:  Some meats and vegetables.
Gender: Precious baby girl!
Labor Signs: Nada
Symptoms:  Being tired on and off and sore breasts.
Belly Button in or out? Still in.
Wedding rings on or off?  Still on and for a long time hopefully. :)
Stretchmarks? The ones around my belly button are starting to become more noticeable. 
How are you feeling? Pretty good! Tired sometimes, especially by bedtime, but I have a great amount of energy now which I LOVE. Gotta love 2nd tri. :)
 What I am looking forward to: Spending time with Lyn, baking and getting laundry done on Friday, hanging out with my in laws on Saturday and going out to eat, and the U of M vs. MSU game.
What I miss:  Having normal energy and working out.
Weekly Wisdom: Also hope, don't expect.  And don't try to find happiness in other people.
Milestones:  Nothing really this week. Except this is the first week that I looked at the size update and thought wow, the baby is getting pretty big!! A whole pound....the size of a spaghetti squash...so awesome!
Pregnancy Moments with Chris and others:  Chris mentioned something about how he realized that he is so affectionate towards Graydon and how can imagine being even more affectionate with our baby girl (if possible?!) I was like awww!  She will be a Daddy's girl. :)

21 Week Survey- Baby O #2

How far along? 21 weeks
Total weight gain/loss: 0 lbs. this week. Probably all the running around I've been doing for Graydon's party, lol.  152 lbs-- 11 lbs. total.  At this point with Graydon I had already gained 17 lbs.
How big is baby?  Baby now weighs about three-quarters of a pound and is approximately 10 1/2 inches long — the length of a carrot. You may soon feel like she's practicing martial arts as her initial fluttering movements turn into full-fledged kicks and nudges. You may also discover a pattern to her activity as you get to know her better. In other developments, your baby's eyebrows and lids are present now, and if you're having a girl, her vagina has begun to form as well. - Baby Center
Maternity clothes?  Yes, but  mostly regular shirts still.
Sleep: Not too bad. Using a wedge and pillow between my knees to stay comfortable and it works well.
Best moment this week:  Hearing that we are having a GIRL! Also hearing that everything looked good on the ultrasound. Telling all of our family and friends and hearing everyone's reactions was awesome.  Having Graydon's birthday party on Saturday was great too!
Movement: Yes, I love it. Some days I feel more than others.
Food cravings: Chocolate, orange juice, sunny side up eggs, pumpkin spice donuts.
Food aversions:  Some meats and vegetables.
Gender: Precious baby girl!
Labor Signs: Nada
Symptoms:  Being tired on and off and sore breasts.
Belly Button in or out? Still in.
Wedding rings on or off?  Still on and for a long time hopefully. :)
Stretchmarks? I have some very faint marks from being pregnant with Graydon but they are not very noticeable.
How are you feeling? Pretty good! Tired sometimes.
What I am looking forward to:Getting more stuff done around our house this weekend.  Hopefully finding a bedding set that I like for the nursery. 
What I miss:  Having normal energy and working out.
Weekly Wisdom: Enjoy your time with family and friends, it always goes by too fast. 
Milestones:  Finding out the gender!
Pregnancy Moments with Chris and others:  When I found out that we were having a girl I was so happy and overwhelmed I just started bawling! Chris and Lyn were so sweet and very happy. It was such a perfect response. All of our friends and families that we have told have had really great responses too. It has been so much fun this weekend!

21 Weeks with Baby Girl

 

 21 Week Comparison-Pregnant with Graydon

 

It's a GIRL!

Wow, we are feeling very blessed right now! Not to mention a little overwhelmed.

Friday morning we had our big ultrasound. Most importantly, everything with the baby looked great according to the ultrasound tech. We were both very thankful for that. Praise God!!  I just feel like with all the health issues I had early on and all the meds I had to take....well, it made me a bit nervous.

She was able to get great shot that showed that the baby was a girl. There were 3 little perfect lines, so it was pretty obvious. We are so happy and excited!  Also, her heartbeat was around 141. Now we need to start thinking about some baby names. We have tossed a few around, but nothing too concrete yet. We also had to buy a couple of "pink" things afterward...tradition! We got some really cute stuff as congrats presents at Graydon's Birthday party Saturday as well. Once again, we feel so thankful and blessed.

Gender reveal at Gray's party.

Happy 2nd Birthday Graydon!

Wow...time truly does fly when you are having fun. Or maybe it just flies when you have a toddler!  I cannot believe he is 2 years old already.

This morning we let him have a cupcake first thing, and blow out candles.  He only ate a little of the frosting and then he acted afraid of the candles, lol.  He asked for fruit snacks too, so of course we gave them to him! After all, you only turn two once. Plus it is his "Golden Birthday." So I really feel the need to make it a good one. I feel bad that he is at daycare today. I should have taken the day off. Tonight we plan on eating some dinner and having some cake, and then this Saturday will be his Birthday party with our families.

And now, for some 2 year stats for Graydon:

He is -- lbs. and --  inches tall.  (I will get this in the morning!)
He can still fit into some 24 month clothes but wears a lot of size 2T.
Still wears size 5 diapers, which he has worn for quite some time now. He will sit on the potty occasionally and sometimes even go but for the most part he is not potty trained at all yet. 
He still loves almost all fruit.
He asks for fruit snacks and popsicles EVERY day.
He loooves cheese, applesauce, garlic bread and any sort of pasta.
He will eat turkey and hot dogs, but will pick at chicken or beef.
He drinks Original flavored Almond Milk vs. whole milk, and water. Once in a while we let him have some juice as a treat and he loves apple or orange juice.
He seems to love chocolate, especially M & Ms although it's rare that he gets them. But if we give him a cookie we typically won't eat it.
As of this week he is into his new "big boy room and bed!"
Loves taking baths especially if they have bubbles.
He loves to read, and especially loves to play with my iPhone. He will ask all the time to play ABCs or Old MacDonald.
He still really doesn't watch TV, but when he does he asks to watch "Thomas" aka Thomas the Train. That is the theme we are doing his Birthday party in this weekend.
For some reason he is obsessed with shoes.
Can sing all of his ABC's and count to 10.
Will try to repeat anything you say and is a huge talker. Like nonstop talking. He amazes me with some of the words he can pronounce, and also how he uses sentences in the correct context. He also likes to tell and show you things.  He usually says " Look at this Momma, look at this." etc.
If we are in the bathroom, he wants us to give him a vitamin. It's hilarious. We are pretty sure he thinks they are candy.
He does really well at either brushing his own teeth or letting you brush his, and if he sees his Daddy start to brush his teeth, Graydon has to brush his too.
His favorite songs to sing are Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, ABCs, The Wheels on the Bus, Old MacDonald and If You're Happy and You Know It.
He currently attends Marci's Daycare while we are at work. His little friends there are Cloe, Gage, and Payton.
He loves to call Grandma and Grandpa Bob on the phone.
Listens well for the most part, and can follow directions, but also really likes to test you to see if you will force him to do what you are asking.
He likes to hit our dog Niles. We try to be really consistent with teaching him that hitting the dog isn't kind and unacceptable, but, once again, gotta love the little stinker toddler personality.
He will say that there is a baby in my belly and likes to kiss it. It's adorable.
Likes to give kisses and hugs for the most part.
Does really well with going to bed and has for a long time. He doesn't ever hardly cry. He always shocks us with how well he does with things.
Graydon loves to be outside and running around. He especially loves swinging and going down slides.
Every time we drive by the mall he asks to "please go down the slide??"
He knows almost all animals. He loves to learn about animals in general. 
He really likes to play with buckles and zippers. Loves his books and puzzles.
He gets compliments all the time about how cute or handsome he is, and how he has "cool hair!"

Graydon has a terrific evening tonight. We had a nice dinner and he ate a ton. He had a bowl of chicken noodle soup, a piece and a half of bread, a bowl of macaroni and cheese, milk and juice, a popsicle, fruit snacks and a yogurt. Then he had a couple bites of frosting, lol. I do not know where he puts it all!! We also sang him Happy Birthday again and let him blow out his candles. His little present tonight was a little stuffed frog that sings Happy Birthday when you press his belly. I think he really likes it!

He also had a little party at daycare today, and for his present he got 5 different little matchbox vehicles and a Thomas the train. He is obsessed with the little cars...he has been carrying them around all night!

20 Week Survey-Baby O #2

How far along? 20 weeks
Total weight gain/loss: 152 lbs-- 11 lbs. total.  At this point with Graydon I had already gained 17 lbs.
How big is baby?  Your baby weighs about 10 1/2 ounces now. He's also around 6 1/2 inches long from head to bottom and about 10 inches from head to heel — the length of a banana. (The way your baby is measured changes now.) He's swallowing more these days, which is good practice for his digestive system. He's also producing meconium, a black, sticky by-product of digestion. - Baby Center
Maternity clothes?  Pants definitely, and still wearing a lot of my regular shirts. I can pull off some maternity but they still feel like tents to me!
Sleep: Pretty good! Been two weeks since I have needed a unisom, yay!
Best moment this week:  So so sooo many fun things again this week. ArtPrize trolley with coworkers. Lights in the Night, downtown Grand Rapids. Klackle Orchard with good friends and all the kiddos. Apple cider, pumpkin donuts, cool weather. Getting lots of stuff done around the house and Graydon's room is finally done!
Movement: Yes, I love it. Some days I feel more than others.
Food cravings: Cereal, juice, fruit, comfort food, soup, pumpkin pie!
Food aversions:  Some meats and vegetables.
Gender: No idea, but thinking GIRL! We find out this Friday.
Labor Signs: Nada
Symptoms:  Being tired on and off and sore breasts.
Belly Button in or out? Still in.
Wedding rings on or off?  Still on and for a long time hopefully. :)
Stretchmarks? I have some very faint marks from being pregnant with Graydon but they are not very noticeable.
How are you feeling?  I am feeling really good, woo hoo!!
What I am looking forward to: Having the ultrasound on Friday and finding out the gender. Graydon's Birthday Party on Saturday!
What I miss:  Having normal energy and working out.
Weekly Wisdom: 2 years flies by fast. Make every second count.
Milestones:  Half way into the pregnancy! Woo hoo!
Pregnancy Moments with Chris and others:  Just people touching my belly, or telling me that I am really popping out. Nothing else I can think of in particular.