Week 23

23 Weeks

23 W 6 D

AJ and I worked a lot on the office to clear it out for Aidan's room.  In fact, it now just needs to be vacuumed, rug steam cleaned, walls painted, and furniture bought and/or assembled.  It was a huge effort to clean out the room this week, I am amazed we were able to do so much
this week! Pictures posted at the end of the blog.

How far along:23 weeks 6 days

How big is baby?: According to the APP, I'm Expecting: Started the Week 23 as the size of a Pomegranate and is about to be a Grapefruit.

Weight gain?: 1 this week, 20 total. 

Stretch marks?: None so far.  Linea nigra has shown back up.

Maternity clothes?: Maybe I should delete this question? The only non maternity clothes I wear are pajamas and bathing suits.

Sleep?: Stomach sleeping continues, and I am still sleeping well. No charley horses waking me up this week either...just dogs.

Best moment?: We were told that we would close on our Construction loan next Friday.  The paperwork is supposed to be finalized Tuesday, so AJ requested an early Friday morning closing.

Also, I greatly enjoyed helping my mom with my sister's baby shower!  I made her a diaper cake, too! My brother and his wife made an awesome baby stroller out of a watermelon.  My parents hosted the shower at their house, and we couldn't have asked for better weather!  It was sunny, but not too hot. 

Worst moment?: Aidan fell out of his chair at daycare and busted the inside of his lip/gum area.  He kept poking his finger at  it, and the bleeding wouldn't stop.  Thankfully, he let me put pressure and ice on it while watching Elmo.

Food cravings?: ICE CREAM - chocolate icec ream and chocolate milkshakes

Symptoms?: Bloody noses continue, but the Charley Horses stopped - it helps I drank more milk.

Exercise?: I continued to walk - 9+ miles this week. I lifted weights twice...still taking it easy.

Movement?: Lot of movement, I can always count on Owen moving around as I lay down for bed.

Belly button?: Partial outie and somewhat flat.

What I miss?: Being able to easily stand up!  Getting off the couch or floor takes effort now.  Like I need to say ummmpf as I get up to help. I think it helps...

Labor signs?:Not yet

TMI: Since I am walking a lot more and have pants with the full belly panel, I can't wear them more than one day because I sweat so bad. :/  I do wear my low waist pants with no panel, but I sneeze and well, pee myself, thus I can only wear them once, too.  More laundry for me.

What I'm looking forward to?:I am attending another baby shower for my sister down in Charleston!  Hopefully we will have some good weather, too.

Friday Night

Saturday Night

Water Boy!

The warm weather has been here, and Aidan is all about being outside and especially playing with water.  In fact, water has encouraged him to learn a new word, 'pool.'

Unless it's raining, we are outside, so it's hard to avoid the water because Aidan is quite convincing when it comes to needing to fill a pool...he even helps.


He belly flops, slides, and jumps in the pool. He demands that those sitting around get in the pool with him, whether there's room for 3 adults and a toddler or not. Or when mom accidentally pops his pool and he has to revert back to his baby pool.  He doesn't care as long as you let him get in the pool.  The only issue comes when Aidan runs outside, and you're two seconds behind him.  He'll attempt to take his clothes off, but jump in the pool, and his diaper quickly swells.  As a side note, he is always supervised while playing in the pool, and if a pool is filled with any water, there is always an adult outside.

As you can see in the picture on the right, not only is Aidan in the baby pool, but he also has his bug sprinkler.  AJ tightened the hose, and I couldn't get the bug disconnected.  So I attempted to fill his pool with the sprinkler, and then Aidan wanted to play with the bug in the pool.  Can never have enough water!

Aidan is definitely a fish.  He loves to go under the water, and if we're at a pool deep enough to jump in, he will jump in the pool until you're tired of lifting him out of the pool to jump.  Seriously, he's a good arm workout, and he laughs when he comes up.  He recently started patting his head in a shallow (kiddie) pool when he wants me to grab him and dunk him.  He will ask me to repeat until my arms are too tired to continue dunking him.  Then he sits down in the pool and wants me to grab his feet to pull him under.  He comes up laughing, squealing, and demanding a repeat!

<----The pool he loves to be dunked in!  It has  built in slide, too, which seems to be a Aidan requirement for a kid pool.  He climb up the stairs, sits down, and then says "Ready, one two three, slide"  Sometimes he says two twice and looks at us like he's tricking somebody.




Recently, I bought a slip and slide.  Yes, I know the box says AGE 5 and up, but again, with adult supervision and help, we tried out the slip and slide.  It was a hit!  Aidan learned to lay on his belly,then we gave him a push down the hill.  He even started his own game where he would roll his soccer ball down the slip and slide then follow it.  Aidan had a blast, and let me tell ya, he wore himself out running back up the hill.  No fighting bed time for Aidan! 









More water fun:

Aidan likes to water plants, but he will run after you with the hose!

Sprinkler Fun!

Playing by the Creek on our Property

Week 22

We have a name! Baby boy number 2 can now be called by his first name, and we actually agreed to a name sooner than with Aidan.

Looking back on Aidan's pregnancy, I was in the midst of designing the nursery at this time. Since our current plan is to be out of this house in 9 months or so, I don't plan on doing much for the nursery. The nursery will become Aidan's brother's room since everything is set up, and Aidan will move to our office. I know it seems like the second child is being neglected, but really, I'm being practical. Plus, the nursery design was more for ME than it ever was for Aidan. In addition, the wall decals are a pain to take off the wall, so any decor will be easily removable. If it's any consolation, Aidan's room will remain plain, too. However, it's Aidan's room that requires the planning, not his brothers. I am in the process of packing up the office and deciding what furniture can stay and what has to be stored elsewhere.


How far along:22 weeks 6 days

How big is baby?: According to the APP, I'm Expecting: Started the Week 22 as the size of a Papaya and am about to be a Pomegranate.

Weight gain?: 2 this week, 19 total. My APP yells at me, calling it an excessive gain, but I disagree.

Stretch marks?: None so far

Maternity clothes?: I'm rocking the maternity clothes. For my work outs, I am using my larger Under Armor shirts I bought last pregnancy.

Sleep?: Still sleeping well and able to sleep on my stomach. I do wake in the middle of the night and have to hug my body pillow because my knees/hips are bothersome.

Best moment?: We received some fantastic house news this week, which puts us two steps closer to the groundbreaking.


I was able to see the baby again!  I thought the technician would only check my previa status, but apparently due to my wild boy, there were some measurements that could not be taken the last time.  Since he was sleeping, I was able to look at his face.  Oh, and the really good news is my previa case looks to be fixing itself, where I am now on the cusp of previa.  The placenta is approximately 2 cm from the cervic, and it has many weeks to keep moving.  The fact that it moved so much in two weeks was positive, so the doctor removed most of my restrictions.

Worst moment?:  While AJ and I attended a couple's baby shower, Aidan threw up three times.  We're not sure if he  had a stomach bug or just upset that we weren't there to put him down.  Either way, I made sure to cuddle Aidan when I got home so he would calm down to go to sleep.

Food cravings?: Still salty foods - pass the popcorn please!

Symptoms?: Bloody noses keep occurring. I also am experience pelvic pressure some days, seems so early to be experiencing this! I also had foot cramping and leg cramping, and I was bad about drinking my milk this week, so I know why it's occurring.

Exercise?: I continued to walk - 9+ miles this week. In addition, I swam approximately one mile.  I also lifted weights on Saturday since the doctor said it would be okay to resume those activities, just take it slow.

Movement?:Very frequent movement.

Belly button?: Partial innie/outie

What I miss?: My walking pace! I was near a 15 min/mile pace, now I am lucky if I am near 16 minutes/ mile!

Labor signs?:Not yet

TMI: I can't count on my stomach not making me rush for a bathroom. :/ Walking is good, but it also backfires when I'm high tailing it to the nearest restroom because my stomach is upset. No incidents so far...

What I'm looking forward to?: Helping my mom throw my sister her baby shower! Plus, it's a 4 day weekend! Woohoo!

AJ and I spent a lot of time Sunday trying to move furniture from the office to other parts of our house to make way for Aidan's room.  The gun safe and desk were the biggest pieces, and those were moved to our room.  Some book shelves and miscellaneous tables were moved into the garage, either for sale or trash, most likely.  And while it doesn't look like it, this is progress:

Oh, so how about the name of Baby Boy No. 2?
When we found out I was pregnant with our second child, I mentioned to AJ that I would like to honor my Pepaw by including his name as our son's middle name...if we had a son.  As you know, we are having a boy, so Joseph was determined to be the middle name.  The harder part was coming up with a first name.  I don't know why, but I really liked the name Owen.  I can't think of anyone I know named Owen, good or bad, however it did end up on 2012's top 100 Boy's Name list at number 38.  AJ liked Levi, though it came from the show Amish Mafia.  There were several other names I threw out, like Ethan and Liam, but I wasn't my favorite and AJ didn't seemed to keen on those.  So there ya have it...

I was going to have Aidan finger paint the name on canvas, but the letters would move because they would not stick well enough.  So I used a roller and John Deere colored paint. 

 

Reduce, REUSE, Recycle - I'm Semi Crafty

It has been two months since I packed up my cloth diapers due to Aidan outgrowing the one size pocket diapers, and while I apologized to the environment, I felt I could do more.  I kept saving all of the boxes from the diapers, hoping to do something productive with them.

Thanks to searching on Pinterest, I found several blogs/tutorials for reusing diaper boxes.  The first was creating a corn hole game, and the second was creating storage bins.  The first crafty attempt was the corn hole game, which would require sewing, which I don't do well.

I had some shirts in my closet that needed to go in the trash, but were generally saved for yard work or painting activities.  So instead of buying new material, I decided to reuse these shirts to give them a new purpose - bean bags.  I have tons of cross stitching thread, so I didn't need to buy thread either.  The only thing I needed was patience to sew and beans for the filling.  The bean bags aren't perfect, but they function well!

Then, I tackled making the corn hole boards from the diaper box.  This was easier to do since it required an exacto knife, marker, carpenter square, a straight edge, and a round object.

Then I decided I would cover the boards so they weren't an eyesore.  I used glue, a brush, heavy paper, and vinyl tape I had lying around.  Again, all materials I had at home. I had very limited waste from the box, which I threw in the recycling bin.

So here's the final product...and so far, has withstood Aidan abusing it, ya know standing on it.  He throws the bean bags, but no where near the board.  Or he runs up to the board and dunks the bean bag in the hole.  Oh well, it was a great rainy day activity that kept him entertained.

The second project was the storage boxes, which I needed more storage to start organizing the insane amount of toys we keep in the living room that Aidan loves to dump out all over the floor.  I figured he had too many toys to play with at once that I should probably try this toy rotation that I have heard other moms doing.

I started with cutting off the flaps and saving them for reuse on a future crafy reuse project.  Then I pulled out some fabric that was left over from a chair reupholstering project that my sister did for Aidan.  Then I started spreading ModPodge on the box and worked my way around the box applying the fabric.  I used binder clips to hold the fabric in place while I worked on one side.  

For gluing the fabric over the edge of the box into the inside of the box, I used a hot glue gun (hah, this is why I am semi crafty, thank you hot glue gun).  I also used the same methods to wrap the fabric around the bottom of the box.  When I originally cut the material, I attempted to leave at least an inch over hang on the top and bottom for the wrapping over the edges.  In addition, I was not worried about the exposed plain cardboard inside of the box.

I then decided I wanted to make handles for the boxes.  I had plenty of fabric scraps I could use, so again, utilizing my hot glue gun, I made handles.  In addition, I had jean buttons that AJ occasionally uses since I can't sew a button that stays.  Since he hadn't used them in a year or so, I decided to put them to use.

Even after attaching the buttons through the box to hold the handles on, I wanted to ensure they would hold, so again, I used the hot glue gun for reinforcement.  Very crafty, right...

I really liked how the storage boxes turned out, and I will definitely make some more because I will need them.  They're cheaper to make than buying wicker baskets, and I reuse the diaper boxes.  My next project, I hope to cover a diaper box to make it a memory box to store cards in.  I saved all the flaps from this project, which I think I can make into dividers for the memory box....stay tuned.

Week 21

How far along?: 21 weeks 6 days

How big is baby?: According to the APP, I'm Expecting: Started the Week 21 as the size of a Carrot and am about to be a Papaya.

Weight gain?: 1.5 this week, 18.5 total.

Stretch marks?: None so far

Maternity clothes?: Exclusively, and I broke down and bought more hangers so my clothes didn't hang on the rocking chair.  I didn't want more hangers because I usually get rid of clothes I don't wear when I buy new clothes. 
 
Sleep?: I sleep well, but I have to use my big pillow, otherwise, my knees are uncomfortable.

Best moment?: I greatly enjoyed playing with Aidan at the bounce house for our friends' little girl's birthday.  He unleashed his wild energy and had a blast.  He definitely did not want to leave.

Celebrating Mother's day was also a very nice way to end my week.  AJ surprised my Saturday with cake and flowers, then on Sunday, Aidan and him gave me a card.  Then we went to my parent's house to continue celebrating.  

 
Worst moment?: Nothing that I can remember!  It has been a very good week.
 
Food cravings?: Still salty food - popcorn.

Symptoms?: I had a charlie horse in the middle of the night once this week - time to up my milk intake!
 
Exercise?: I continued to walk - 10+ miles this week. I did not visit the gym because of the placenta previa.  Hopefully it's correcting itself, and I will know more this coming Friday.

Movement?:Lots of kicking and moving around

Belly button?: Part out, part in

What I miss?: It's only been a week, but I miss my hard work outs.

Labor signs?:Not yet

TMI: You know when you don't ride a bike for a while, and it you jump on and knock out 15 miles?  The next day, you can be sore, especially if you have the stock seat. Well, I didn't ride a bike, but I sure feel like I have.  Oy, I do not remember the pressure starting this early.

What I'm looking forward to?: AJ and I are attending a couple's baby shower for one of AJ's coworkers.  We have known this couple since AJ went to training for law enforcement, and they have had trouble having a baby.  We are so excited with them and cannot wait to celebrate with them.

Almost Groundbreaking News...

The Builder's sign at the front entrance!

It's been over a month since the last update on building our dream house. We are so close to groundbreaking, I can taste the dust of the shovels throwing dirt! Fortunately, no hiccups, just playing the waiting game.

Here's a quick summary on what's been completed:

• Subdivided the land
• Met with the POA
• Agree to New Easements
• House Plans and Site Approved by POA
• Builder Chosen
• Bank Chosen

Here are our show stopping To Do's from the last update:

• Record the new parcel with the county - 100% Done, though they reclassified the zoning, which AJ went back to the county to ensure only 1 acre was a homesite and the rest was listed as a farm.
• Finalizing the bank application - We signed a lot of paperwork April 19th so the bank could move forward with the land and house appraisal; the bank needed the contract from the builder before we could proceed. The appraiser called the same day to schedule a visit the following week. In anticipation of a quicker appraisal, the bank has begun it's process and it's so close to being able to send everything to the underwriter. Let's hope the appraisal comes back soon, and is a great appraisal. We need some positive luck!
• Pay off the Land Loan - Since we subdivided the land, we are hopeful that we can take the 7 acres free and clear, but this will be based on the appraisal.  This might be our biggest hurdle for the closing on the construction loan.
• With the contract signed with the builder, there are lots of things we now have to decide/pick out, but we are waiting on the list from the builder. In the meantime, we have been making choices for the color, style, material, etc for the kitchen cabinets. We have also been working on other things. We also picked out our favorite hardwood floor and cedar plank sample and gave it to the builder. Progress, one color at a time.

If you look closely, there are stakes for the house (hint the green, grassy area)

Behind the Scenes progress:

• Well installation - The well is installed along with its motor. We sent the check in last week to pay for this, so now we have running water!!Just no where to run it to, ya know, minor details
• Interior Exposed Beams and Columns - Our beams and columns have been cut and cured. AJ is scheduled to pick them up Friday, and they will be stored at the horse farm he works at.
• Timber and Wood Ceilings - No progress than this, other than we chose to go with the higher grade material that AJ can get at the same cost as the lower grade material commercially available.
• Construction Permit - Minutes after we signed the contract with the builder, the county called him and told him the permit was ready for pick-up! Quite the timing, so with the permit in hand, all we need is the bank!!
• Address - With the construction permit came the address. Our land feels so official now that it has a place to receive mail, though no mailbox. I need to order more checks, and I think I will use the new address.
• Power - The co-op utility company came out and installed the power lines, security light, and meter box. So now we have electricity and water. Some of the power is above ground (boo) but a lot was able to be run underground (yay!). Now I need to figure out what foliage I can line the driveway with since this is where the power is run above ground.

Security Light, Electrical Box & Meter, Permit Box, and the covered well

Our Next Steps:

• Have the appraisal on the house and land complete
• Negotiate with the land loan bank how much land it will release free and clear

Groundbreaking!!! - Hopefully by the end of May, the foundation work will have begun. Cross your fingers and toes for us! 

And for those interested, here's my long driveway...can't wait to plant some trees to line it.  The power lines weren't as ugly as I expected, but due to them cross back and forth across the driveway, it will like my selection in the trees since I don't want anything branches to threaten the power line.

 

Big Brother in Training

I'm sure there are books out there that give advice on how to let your child know that he or she will have a younger siblings, but if I had time to read a book, I would choose something more fascinating.  So I'll wing it, go by instinct and friendly advice.

I waited until we knew whether Aidan would have a brother or sister to buy a Cabbage Patch doll for Aidan.  Aidan points to babies when he sees them, so I figured a baby doll would be good for him.  I had previously searched Toys R Us and Amazon.com for a doll I liked, but nothing turned up.  I was quite disappointed by the lack of selection at TRU, espicially since I remember there being so many to choose from when I was a child.  Rarely does Amazon fail me, too, but that's okay because I found what I wanted directly at the Cabbage Patch site.

So "Lance Cameron" came within in a few days with a pacifier, bottle, diaper, and an outfit.  Aidan quickly took to feeding the baby, taking his pacifier (and sometimes giving it to him), kissing the baby, and hugging the baby.  He even wants to take baby outside so the baby can play, too.  He puts the baby in a tricycle, puts the baby on the tractor, and carries the baby to play ball.



Aidan also pushes the baby in his toys or on the swing.  I'm sure when he goes swimming in our backyard again, the baby will have to join him.  Right now, the baby smells like baby powder, but I am sure in a few weeks, he will have bruises, smudges, and smell like Bo.  But hey, all those things means it was a well loved toy, right?!

Aidan also started trying to wrestle with the baby.  Oops, but the baby doesn't wrestle back.  We'll have to teach Aidan to be gentle, which isn't going so well with his current toddler friends...we have a lot to work on the prepare Aidan, but I think he'll be a loving big brother who just needs guidance on how delicate a baby can be.  But hopefully he'll keep loving on his baby doll and taking it everywhere in preparation of his real little brother...and one day soon, I'm sure he'll feel his first real kick.

Week 20

HALFWAY! I can't believe I am halfway through this pregnancy. It is certainly flying by this time. I remember last time at 20 weeks, I was going out to eat for my birthday with the grandmothers to be and then picking out the nursery furniture. This time, we kind of sort of know what we want to do with Aidan and the nursery, but there has been no research done or any progress made on turning the office, aka glorified storage closet, into a bedroom. So much to do, so little time! We'll get there, right?!

How far along?: 20 weeks 6 days

How big is baby?: According to the APP, I'm Expecting: Started the Week 20 as the size of a Banana and am about to be a Carrot. Baby is now measured from head to heel instead of crown to rump.

Weight gain?: 1 this week, 17 total.

Stretch marks?: None so far

Maternity clothes?: Exclusively. Now I need more hangers because the new shirts hang across the rocking chair in my room.

Sleep?: Sleeping well, still stomach sleeping. Also, I do not wake to pee, and I never did with Aidan...I hope this holds true for this entire pregnancy.

Best moment?: Beach weekend with some fantastic friends. The weather wasn't as great as I would like for the beach, but good company makes you forget those minor things...


Playing at a water table at the Children's Museum

I also saw the baby on Friday.  I got a call from my silly insurance company that I needed to be seen for an A/S since I had placenta previa identified the last time during week 20.  What?!  You mean the appointment I tried to push back a week is now approved?!  I guess their maternity care program didn't review my files in time...they classify me as "high risk" even though my doctor doesn't.  I see no need, but I guess from a financial standpoint, the inusrance thinks I am a risk.  Anyway, baby boy #2 is a wild boy - it took the technician over 40 minutes to take all her measurements.  He was ALL OVER THE PLACE. Breach, traverse, facing us, back towards up, feet on the left, feet on the right, etc.  Guess I should prepare myself...two wild boys.

Worst moment?: Last week I mentioned my computer issue - well, it was diagnosed and the drop caused internal physical damage to the hard drive. So the HDD and its contents are lost unless I want to pay a grand, yes you read that correctly, to have the HDD possibly repaired and data recovered. I'm starting to save my pennies. In the mean time, I am downloading all of my camera photos from Google Plus/Picasa, bought a photo recovery software and recovered 900 deleted photos from my memory card, and am checking when my last back up occurred and when I transferred files to AJ's computers. I think I will be relatively whole on the pictures, though the files from Google aren't full size and none of the videos were part of the instant upload from my phone. I wanted to cry when I saw the diagnosis...lesson learned, do better at backing up. I have a system - back up to an external HDD and burn the files to a DVD incase the external HDD crashes. I went too long in between back ups, and I didn't realize how long it had been. I also lost my mailing list, so I have to start collecting addresses again. What a pain!


I also learned that I have placenta previa again.  It's a moderate case, and they'll check me again in two weeks to see if it has improved.  For now, I am on pelvic rest and watchful of any bleeding.  Someone please tell Aidan that momma can't always pick him up...

Food cravings?: I'm off the pickle kick, and now I want french fries and Cheez-Its. Salty food.


Salty Pretzel from the IOP, one of my favorties

 
Symptoms?: FIVE weeks of not getting sick! No bloody noses this week, let's hope that was a one week fluke.

Exercise?: I continued to walk - 10+ miles this week. In addition, I worked out at the gym, finished my push up challenge, and started a wall sit challenge.

Movement?:Frequent movement, not painful or bladder clearing. These are the very enjoyable kicks and flails.

Belly button?: Becoming flatter.

What I miss?: A fountain Diet Pepsi while eating pizza

Labor signs?:Not yet

TMI: Don't take two doses of 200 mg of magnesium if you forgot the previous two days. It will definitely help move things along, but then, you are sometimes in a state of panic looking for a bathroom! So walking in the neighborhood was kind of risky, and fortunately, I didn't have to knock on anyone's door asking to use the restroom and explaining my situation.

What I'm looking forward to?: This coming weekend, Aidan and I are going to a birthday party for college friends' little girl. She will be two, and the party is at a bounce house. I cannot wait to see my wild man have fun! And yes, we are on the go a lot it seems!

The Bump Progression - Week 17 through Week 20:
 

   Week 17                                  Week 18                                         Week 19      

 Comparison Between Aidan's Pregnancy and this one.