The Wheels are in Motion..... Wow how things have changed!

It's been over four years since I've made a blog post!! So much has changed and so many more things are getting ready to change. As we start this radically new chapter in our lives, I knew I had to blog about it. In the coming months we will be preparing. I wanted to keep a log of that as well.

But first.... where are we now and what has changed??

The pictures above were taken over this past summer. The company I work for commissioned a photoshoot for my family because they were featuring me in their Leaders Magazine (EEEK!), but I am getting ahead of myself...

So let me try to break it down. After our youngest was born , (this was also about the time I stopped blogging), Joe was just starting nursing school and I was trying to grow my photography business. The next couple of years were pretty tough. Joe went to school, while still trying to work his full time job and I was working full time as a graphic designer, while growing my photography business. Let's just say we didn't get to spend much time together as a family and I was up until 2am many nights editing pictures for my clients. Once Joe finished school, he started working nights.... oh boy were times tough then! After almost a year of that, he got a day position and things definitely improved some. I was still working when he wasn't and visa versa. My photography business was very busy and thriving, but the pay wasn't as great as I had hoped (clearly I should have been charging more) and the hours were long and grueling. We were broke, buried in debt, living pay check to pay check and just trying to keep our heads above water.

About 3.5 years ago, at a time when I needed it desperately, someone shared essential oils with me. Wow. I couldn't believe what a difference they made in our lives. Over the next couple of years, as I used the oils for anything and everything that came up in our family, I was also sharing them with everyone else I knew. Before I knew it.... I was slowly building a business without even realizing it, just by helping others take more control of their health care.  About two years ago, I decided to really go for it. About 6 months later, I left my job as a graphic designer at a company I had been with for 12 years!  Then at the beginning of 2016, I decided to lay down my hat as a photographer and close the doors on my business.  It was scary, but so exciting and liberating at the same time. Now, as my "job" I get to teach others how to use essential oils, and how to change their lives physically, emotionally and financially. It's pretty amazing and I feel incredibly blessed.

One of the best parts about it all is that we get to finally really be a family! It's made me really appreciate this time that we have with them when they are young and I really want to soak it up as much as I can. With that being said.... we have decided to take our lives and my business on the road!! We sold our house over the summer and had planned on renting for a while so we could take some time to find some property that we loved and maybe have a house built. We figured since we are renting right now anyway, it would be the perfect time to do this before we settle into our forever home. We are downsizing, selling a bunch of our stuff and moving into an RV! We are going to live in the RV, explore the country and homeschool for at least one year. I will be working remotely wherever we are and also visiting members of my team along the way and helping them grow their business as well. I am so excited about our new adventure and what lies ahead! 

It's so crazy how an idea can seem so out of reach. But if we take that idea, make a plan, decide to work towards it and make it happen, the reality becomes just that.... reality. I am so excited to turn this dream into a reality!

We have soooooo much to do to prepare for this. Moving from a 3,000 square ft home into an RV is pretty daunting. As much as I want to blog about our life on the road, I thought blogging about our experience getting there would be pretty interesting (and hilarious) to share and look back on as well. 

It's November, we plan on getting through the Holidays and then really tackling the downsizing starting in January. Before christmas though, we have a date with the basement (which we haven't touch since we dumped everything into it in June when we moved in). We are hoping to eliminate about 90% of the stuff we have in there. You know, all of our worldy possessions that we move from place to place but haven't actually used in 5-10 years. Pictures to come of that disaster.  We are going to finish out the Munchkin's school year and our lease and plan to hit the road in July!

Let the fun begin!! 

Four Weeks (and One Day) In....

I haven't been blogging... it's so hard with a newborn. I have been mostly spending my time with this little one in my arms...

The Little Peanut, 13 days old

I had forgotten how time consuming it is to have a newborn in the house. So when I do get a few free minutes it's hard to think about blogging when I have laundry, dishes or gazillion other things to do.

Aside from all that, I also had a kidney stone. It started hurting on a Sunday night and I ended up having to go to the ER. I was freaking out about feeding the peanut because I didn't even have any milk set aside from her. I had to pump some at the hospital and my mom brought it home for her. After a CAT scan they told me the stone was really huge and that I would need to set up an appointment with a urologist to have it removed.  I finally got an appointment set up the following Thursday. He told me there was no way I was going to pass it on my own and he set a date (10 days later!) for me to have a procedure done where they send ultra sonic waves through it to break it up into smaller pieces. I would also have to be under anesthesia and was told I couldn't nurse for 24 hours and would have to pump and dump. With everything that was going on, and on top of my hormones going crazy, it all seemed a little overwhelming. Not gonna lie, I had several meltdowns.

Right away I started pumping milk and setting it aside. That weekend, the pain went away and I was hoping that the stone had moved into my bladder. Finally, this past Wednesday, the stone came out! I was so happy and so relieved!! I really didn't want to have to have that procedure done and I definitely didn't want to have to pump and dump for 24 hours either (although from everything I read it was actually safe to still nurse after anesthesia, so I wasn't going to wait the full 24 hrs)

Being home by myself with a very painful kidney stone and taking care of a newborn was not easy, but we figured it out. It's definitely much easier though now without it!  So here's the little effer...

Isn't that ridiculous?! I couldn't believe how big it was when it came out! It was 8mm!! Oh and apparently I also have 6 more stones in one kidney and 7 in the other. The urologist wants to wait until after a year or so (when the peanut is a little older), break them up and get them moved out. Awesome.

So now that the stone has passed I don't have to worry about all that any more and we can move on.

The munchkin loves being a big sister...

The first week or two, she was definitely a little jealous and confused. She was looking for alot of extra attention and wasn't really sure what to think of things. Now that she has gotten a little more used to her new little sister and has realized that she isn't going anywhere, she has come around and is doing really well.  She is always wanting to kiss and sing to her and "pet" her. It's really sweet.

Now that the Peanut is closer to a month old she has started getting pretty fussy in the late evenings. It really sucked for the first few nights she was like that. I didn't get to sleep until about 3:00 am or so with her crying and fussing for the few hours before that.  I did a little research online and came across this stuff called Colic Calm. It's pretty much a homeopathic gripe water with all natural ingredients and it got really good reviews. I was still hesitant to use it, but I just wanted to make her feel better. You could order from Amazon, but I wanted it faster. The closest place that I could find that carried it was about 25 minutes from our house. I sent Joe out to get it and it has been totally worth it. Within 20 minutes, she is totally calm and seems so much happier. It also helps her to sleep better. If you have a baby that gets a little fussy in the evening with some gas or tummy troubles, this stuff might be just what you need!

Colic Calm

I can't believe that she is already going to be a month old on Tuesday! Time is just flying by. Hopefully I can write a post and give a better update of how things have been going with us. Alright, I better get back to snuggling up with this little angel....

The Peanut's Birth Story

First off, please excuse any typos or grammer mistakes. I am typing this quickly. I don't have alot of time for blogging right now, but I really wanted to get this done before I forgot anything important.


I still can't believe she's finally here. She's no longer moving around in my belly, she's now officially an outside baby. I also can't believe how amazing everything went with her birth. It was such an overall wonderful experience. So much better then I could have hoped for.

Things started overnight and early Friday morning, July 6th. My contractions were strong, but nothing consistent. They were coming every hour, sometimes more, sometimes less, but they were pretty strong and definitely different then the contractions I had been having before. They came and went throughout the day on Friday. I would sometimes have to stop what I was doing and hold on to something nearby, focusing my breath and trying to relax as they came and went. They would never get any where near a consistent five minutes apart, so I just kept going about my day and getting through each one.

Throughout that night and into the next morning, the contractions started to become extremely intense and much more painful. The came almost exactly one hour apart throughout the entire night. Each one seemed to last a really long time and each one seemed to be stronger and more painful then the last. I just laid in bed, on my side, trying to stay calm and focused and breathing through each one. It was a very long night and somehow I still managed to get some sleep between each contraction.

I got up early Saturday morning and told Joe that I had a feeling we were going to have a baby that day. My mom texted me around 9:00 am asking the peanut to come out and meet us. I told her what a horrible night it had been. She said she would get the little pool in her back yard ready so I could sit in it. I told her that this was the day. It had to be.

I started getting some things packed. They started becoming about 10 minutes apart consistently. About 10:00am, I decided to lay down for a while and see if I could get any rest. The contractions kept coming, getting closer and closer together. I laid in bed wondering if we should maybe head to the hospital soon. I just didn't feel it was time quite yet.

I really really wanted to have an unmedicated, natural birth. This isn't always easy in a hospital setting and I knew the longer I could hold out at home, the better chance I would have. I knew as soon as I got to the hospital and they started trying to poke me with things and make me sit in the bed while they monitored me, that it would be so much more difficult to handle the pain and make it without any assistance. I was afraid I would cave as soon as I was stuck in that bed, the contractions getting stronger and stronger and more and more painful and the nurses saying, "Are you sure you don't want an epidural? Are you sure we can't give you anything for the pain?" I just didn't want the temptation. I also knew that dealing with the contractions in my own home would be so much more bearable. I could lay in my bed, take a shower, sit on a ball, walk around the house, or lean up against my wall, all in a familiar setting. I could have the help of my husband and the distraction of the munchkin.

I got out of bed once I realized the contractions were started to get closer and closer together. I started to time them and realized they were around 2 to 3 minutes apart. Looking back, I am surprised I didn't just drop everything and head in at that moment.  I didn't really have a master plan or think really hard about what I was doing. I just kept going with my gut and doing whatever felt right. We started bringing everything into the kitchen to get ready to load in the car. I told Joe to grab the cooler so I could pack up all my food in it for our stay. He asked if we really needed to, he could always come back for it. I told him that we were definitely going to have this baby when we got there and I was going to be starving afterwards! After an hour of the contractions being 2 to 3 minutes apart, I called my mom and told her that we were dropping off the munchkin and heading to the hospital.

The ride to the hospital was the worst. Every bump and sharp turn felt like I was being stabbed somewhere down below. The contractions were getting so strong and close together I could barely see straight. By the time Joe pulled up to the emergency door exit, I knew there was no way I could even get out of the car by myself. Joe helped me out and walked me in. He parked the car, while an employee put me in a wheelchair and brought me up to the maternity floor. We had called my OB on the way there and told her it was time.

As soon as I arrived in the maternity ward, they could see how much pain I was in. I told them my contractions were only a couple minutes apart and they started working really quickly. It was a whirlwind of nurses and technicians all bringing equipment into my room.

They asked me if I wanted an epidural and I told her no and that I didn't want any pain killers of any kind. They put me into the bed, hooked up the little monitors to track the baby's heartbeat and my contractions and then went to check my cervix.

"She's at a 9 and 100% effaced!"

"Call her doctor, this baby is coming!"

I think I timed that one pretty good if you ask me!

Suddenly my legs were up on the racks and my doctors partner, who was already at the hospital came into the room. There was no way my doctor could make it there on time.  My water had not broken and was still in place. The doctor told me to let her know when I was ready and she was going to break my water. She said that things were going to move very quickly after that. My mom still wasn't there and I didn't want her to miss it, but I was in so much pain and I needed to move forward. The doctor broke my water and right after, my mom flew into the room.

With Joe on my right leg and my mom on my left, we were ready. Atleast as ready as I would ever be. The doctor told me to let her know when I felt ready to push and to start pushing with the contractions. For each contraction I would bear down and push as hard as I could as Joe and my mom would help pull up my legs. I was pushing so hard and at one point the doctor told me to relax my face as much as I could and try to push only through my bottom.

Joe told me later that my face had been so red and all of my veins were popping out, so that was probably why she offered that suggestion.  Also afterwards, I had tiny red dots, little blood vessels, that were all over my face and shoulders. They faded after a day, but if the doctor hadn't suggested that to me and I hadn't followed her advice, I probably could have done some real damage there.

Through each contraction, I pushed as hard as I could. They kept telling what a good job I was doing and I tried believing them, even though it hurt like hell and I couldn't tell if I was really making any progress or not. At one point I remember saying that I didn't know what to do, it just hurt so bad and then I asked if anything I was doing was even helping.

I had read about the "Ring of Fire", but nothing could have ever prepared me for it. I knew as soon as I felt it that it was exactly that. It was crazy intense, a burning feeling that really felt like a ring of fire. Everyone was telling me to push as hard as I could, to push right where the pain was. The doctor said that she could see her hair and her head was coming out. Joe and my mom were taking peeks, getting excited and telling me that she was coming, to just keep pushing. I took a deep breath, let it out and pushed as hard as I could, then pushed a little harder.

Suddenly I felt the intense pressure and I knew her head was coming out. I also felt a huge sense of relief as soon as it passed through, them more pressure as her shoulders came through. I could actually feel it all, each part as it passed through. It was crazy painful, but so wonderful at the same time. I can't describe that feeling... but even as the pain was hitting me, I was somehow grateful I could feel it.

Later Joe told me that right before her head came out, as it was pushing it's way out and stretching things, that my vagina looked like homer simpson's mouth, but with the slit going in the other direction. Ewe.

Finally her shoulders passed and a huge feeling of relief passed over my body. The doctor pulled her the rest of the way out. I was able to stop pushing and let me body relax.

Holy crap, what a relief.

We arrived at the hospital right around 1:00pm and she was born at 1:52pm!

Joe cut the cord, and she was handed to me. She was covered in the thickest layer of vernix you could imagine. My cheesy little baby! I was so happy she was finally here and that I could love on her and hold her.

 

The doctor finished everything up below as they checked the baby over and made sure everything was okay.

It was weird passing the placenta and feeling everything. I had a small tear, so the doc stitched that up as well.  I told them I wanted to start nursing right away and once the doc was finished up with everything else down below, they handed her over to me. She latched on right away and nursed for 15 minutes on each side!

Her first bath took forever. The nurse had to work really hard to remove all of the vernix from her skin. Joe asked her if we could collect it in a bottle and use it to moisturize our skin. She laughed, but also looked at him like he was crazy.

 

I couldn't believe how great I felt. I was able to get up and use the restroom and there was nothing constraining me to the bed. I had zero swelling anywhere on my body and other then feeling pretty sore down below, I felt completely normal.  After my first birth experience with the munchkin, I was stuck in the bed for hours afterwards waiting for any feeling to come back to my legs from the epidural. I hated it. What a different experience this was!

I was overwhelmed with so many emotions. I was so inlove with this new baby. So happy she had arrived safely and healthy. I was so grateful. I was also so happy that everything had happened the way that it did. That this birth experience was everything I had hoped for.  I felt incredibly lucky.

40 Weeks!! Still no baby....

Today is the day! You know, the day I marked on my calendar as the DUE DATE! The day we have been counting down to and waiting for and planning for....

The munchkin was late. Early on, I assumed little Peanut would be late too. But as we got into the last couple of months, I was having so many contractions and false labor I thought for sure my body was gearing up and she would arrive early.

June 15th was our first false alarm. I started having contractions and they continued to get closer together and lasting longer. They were not extremely painful though so I hesitated to go into the hospital. It was a Friday night though, so I couldn't go in to see my doctor the next day and it just seemed like something wasn't right. So we headed in, and instead of coming home with a baby, I returned with a diagnosis for a urinary tract infection and dehydration. Apparantly that is what was causing all of the contractions. I was a little confused about the dehydration, since all I really drink is water, but I vowed to try to drink more. As far as the UTI, this was my 2nd one while being pregnant. They assured me this was normal and that being pregnant can cause them very easily with the weight of the baby and all of the pressure sometimes pushing down on things and causing infections. Ugh.

The following weeks, the contractions continued. Nothing that had a pattern or that made me think anything major was happening. Definitely enough to be annoying and make a good night's sleep very hard to come by.

Wednesday, June 27th, was our 2nd false alarm. I started having contractions around 6:00pm. I didn't think much of them at first, evening contractions were pretty normal for me at this point, but over the next few hours they started getting extremely strong and painful and much closer together. Between 9 and 10 they were less then 5 minutes apart and were lasting about a minute each. We decided we better head in. We packed everything up, dropped the munchkin off at my parents and headed in about 10:30. I was literally yelling out in pain and stopping during contractions to catch my breath and hold on to something. The drive there was awful. They were coming in so strongly and painfully, I was afraid we weren't even going to make it there on time. Once we arrived, parked and headed up to the maternity floor, the contractions started to slow down.  Right then I had a feeling we were not having a baby that night and I was soooooo upset! Not upset that she wasn't ready, but upset that we had waited and waited and made sure before we took another unecessary trip to the hospital (which was also a 30-40 minute drive from our home). I really really really didn't want to head in again, just to come home empty handed.

But ofcourse, that is exactly what happened. After hooking me up to the monitors to check everything out and see how my contractions were going, they suggested I walk around a little to see if things would get started again. I walked for a little bit, but then decided to just head home. It just seemed to me that if something was going to happen, it would be happening... and I didn't want to just hang out at the hospital on a Friday night when I could be at home in bed sleeping (or trying to anyway). We headed home around 1:00am. Atleast I now I had two giant water mugs with straws as souvenirs from each trip. I guess that is something. 

After discussing my schedule and daily activities at the hospital, they did suggest I might want to try and take it much easier and that I was probably trying to do too much at this stage in my pregnancy. It seemed everyone else was telling me the same thing (including my husband), so I decided to go ahead and start my maternity leave and try to slow down and relax more before the little Peanut's arrival.  That was a little over a week ago, and I guess it was a good idea, because I haven't had near as many contractions and have been feeling much better. I am going stir crazy though!

So obviously, she will be arriving late. Just like the munchkin. I have absolutely no desire to be induced or force anything along, so it will just be a waiting game until she decides she is ready. I hope it doesn't come to it, but my doctor will only let me go 2 weeks over. That will put us around the 19th for an induction date if it comes to that point (oh how I hope it doesn't go that long!). I have a doc appt today and I guess she will set a date for us just incase. I haven't been having my cervix checked or anything like that, but now that we are at my due date, she will want to check it and see what is going on.

I am definitely ready for her arrival. I have been nesting like a mad woman and I don't think I could find another cabinet or drawer to clean out. I have cleaned and organized every square inch of this house and have cooked, frozen and packed away enough food to feed us all for months. Joe keeps calling me a doomsday prepper. I might have gone a little bit overboard... but it definitely isn't going to hurt anything.  I won't have to worry about any cooking for a while, I can just concentrate on this little baby once she finally decides to grace us with her presence.

It is so strange how different things feel anticipating our 2nd baby, as opposed to our first. I feel so much more calm and at peace with things. I am ready. I just wish she was!

Until then, we will be anxiously waiting her arrival!!

Here's a few pics we took earlier in the week. I am 39 weeks and 4 days along...

The munchkin loves giving little peanut hugs and kisses.

The munchkin gets pretty upset when we tell her that her little sister isn't ready to come out and play yet.

The munchkin will put a hand on each side of my belly and with a very serious look on her face, tell little peanut that it's time to come out and meet us and that we are waiting for her. She will hug and kiss my belly and tell me that she loves her and that we are all family. It's the cutest and sweetest stuff and it just melts my heart.

Look at the size of this belly!!

Me and my sis :)

I am hoping my next post will include some good news about this baby's entry into the world!!

Update: I just got home from my doctor's appt and there really isn't much new going on. I am still dilated at about a 3 and "very thick". Looks like she is hanging in there a while longer. I have an appointment set for next Thursday. They want to do a stress test and make sure everything is going well. I guess if we make it to that appointment, they will then make plans and set a date to have me induced. Hopefully we won't have to go there. She still has two more weeks to come out on her own. I am not too worried about it, I think she will come on her own just fine. That's what I am telling myself for now anyway.

35 Week Ultrasound and Our Memorial Day Weekend

This morning we had our final ultrasound. I will be 35 weeks along tomorrow. 35 WEEKS! Holy Crap! Little Peanut is gonna be here sooooooo soon. We took the munchkin with us so she could get a little peek of her baby sister as well. She was so excited and was so good the whole time we were there. 

Everything went really well at the ultrasound. I am measuring right on schedule, all of our fluids are looking great.... the tech kept saying, “your fluids are looking so good!” Once in the regular room with our nurse practitioner, she repeated this excitedly as well. So apparently my fluids are looking really good... and it’s even something to be pretty excited about. Too bad I am not entirely sure why that is so exciting.

Baby girl is LOW. Like so low, the tech asked if I had been in alot of pain in my pelvic area. I actually have been pretty uncomfortable the past week, so I guess this helps explain that. Apparently her head is so far down she might be trying to escape already. Her little fist was also down there covering up her face as well, so under these circumstances we couldn’t even get a little peek of her. Nothin! The tech kept having me roll over and she kept wiggling my belly around trying to get her to move, but she wasn’t having any of it. I guess she wants to be a total surprise as far as what she is going to look like. At one point towards the end I was about to sit up and she started kicking and squirming and moving around alot, so the tech tried to take another look. After one more attempt, she says, “Looks like she somehow managed to move down even more, this baby isn’t giving us anything!”  Although we were very happy and thankful that everything else was looking so great, we were a little bummed to not even get a peek of little baby girl’s face.

This is what we did come away with. The first picture is of her arm. The second picture.... well I am not so sure to be honest. I think it might be her arm with her hand covering her face. It just looks all blobby to me.

We did come away with something I thought was very positive. The munchkin’s head had measured in the 90th percentile right before she was born. She definitely had a big noggin! But this little peanut’s head is in the 70th percentile. So I am hoping that this means labor might be a tad bit easier with a smaller head to squeeze out. One can hope at least! Right?

* * * *

This past weekend was Memorial Weekend. Normally, this would mean camping, going off to the lake or fun BBQ’s at friends’ houses. This year, we had nothing planned. Both of my sister’s went camping and took all their little kiddos with them. I camped before during my first pregnancy and I vowed to never do it again.  Plus the temps were in the high 90’s, so I had no interest in spending much time sitting outside in the heat at this stage in my pregnancy. It actually ended up being a really nice and relaxing weekend, with us not really making any plans and just hanging out. 

We spent Saturday morning hanging around the house. We baked some cookies and Joe and I both took a nap when the munchkin did. Afterwards we went to my parents house for dinner and my mom had a little pool set up for the munchkin to play in.  Sunday morning, I had a photoshoot at the house. We had set the studio up the night before, so I pretty much woke up that morning, ate some breakfast and my clients arrived for their session. They also happened to be friends of ours, so afterwards her little girl (only a few months younger then mine) played with the munchkin for a while before they left. After the munchkin’s nap, we headed out to run some errands and grabbed some dinner.  That evening we just hung out around the house and watched a movie. 

Monday, I pretty much slept in until noon. We had been up for quite a while during the night with a weird random puking at 1:00am by the munchkin. It was everywhere. We gave her a bath and had to wash all of her sheets and wipe down her headboard and everything. It was so gross and I felt so bad for her. This left her very upset and she couldn’t get back to sleep until around 4:00am. I still have no idea why she puked. She didn’t have a fever and has been totally fine ever since. It’s only the 2nd time she has really puked since she was a baby and had all her reflux issues, so the whole thing was really strange. I also had braxton hicks contractions all night long, so I didn’t actual start getting any real sleep until about 5 or 6am.  I finally rolled out of bed and Joe made breakfast for me and lunch for him and the munchkin. He whipped up some scrambled eggs with onions, mushrooms, tomatoes, cheese and bacon. It was soo good! 

During the munchkin’s nap, I made an apple crisp to take to my parents house with us. We were heading to their house for dinner again. I felt so lucky that my parents made dinner for us two evenings over the weekend. This was really awesome, especially since I was having braxton hicks contractions ALL WEEKEND LONG. My mom had set up another, somewhat deeper pool (about 2 feet, lol) so I dug up a maternity suit and plopped myself down into the pool. It felt pretty good being somewhat weightless while sitting there. And afterwards my pelvic area felt alot better too for a while. Sitting around and relaxing was exactly what I needed, cuz dealing with those contractions was pretty exhausting in itself. I had planned on finishing up the little peanut’s nursery, but that obviously never happened. I am really glad we hadn’t made any real plans and attempted to really go anywhere. It was also really nice getting in some extra time with my parents as well. I love that we live less then a mile from them now.

* * * *

I was supposed to be done taking pictures until after my maternity leave and things settled down with the new baby’s arrival, but it looks like I will have one more shoot still this Saturday evening. When I got a message from a family I had taken pictures for in the fall, asking if I could possibly have another session with them before my baby comes, I just couldn’t say no. I had so much fun with them and their two little girls and knew that it would be a really fun shoot. So I will be lugging this big ole belly out once more out for an outdoor shoot. Hopefully it won’t be too hot. I am actually planning on having my husband and the munchkin go with me so they can hang out at the playground while we are taking pictures at the old farmhouse. This park is about 40 minutes from my house and with all these crazy contractions I have been having, it’s probably better to play it safe just incase. 

This is my 5th family to hire me again for a second session since I launched my photography business in the fall. I think that is so awesome and makes me feel really good!

* * * *

So we are counting down the days, I feel like we are in that final stretch and she will be here so soon. I can not wait to meet her and love on her and introduce her to her big sister! I am also really looking forward to no longer being pregnant. It’s kinda bittersweet too... we are not planning on having any more children, so these last few weeks may be the last time I will ever feel a little baby growing inside of me. As uncomfortable as I am, I am also trying to remember that, and relish in the joy of it all as much as I can.

Mother's Day... Best One Ever!!

Me and My Sisters' Girls... Cousins!

Mother's Day this year was absolutely amazing.  First off I got to sleep in until 11:00am! That NEVER happens. I think I really needed it too. I don't sleep that well anyway, considering I am 32 weeks preggo and sleeping through the night just isn't something I can enjoy these days. Getting to sleep in those extra hours in the morning to make up for said sleep... wonderful! Ofcourse staying in bed that long has it's downfalls as well, like making me super sore!


When I did finally roll out of bed, I was greeted by a very excited little girl, shouting "Happy Mother's Day! Happy Mother's Day!" She was so excited to show me the flowers that she picked out all by herself at the store with daddy. It pretty much melted my heart. Last year she was way too young to really get anything like Mother's Day, so this was really my very first year that she could be excited about it and wanted to give me extra lovins. It was pretty awesome.

I had a card from the munchkin and the hubs and the flowers she picked out for me. We are on a super strict budget getting ready for the new baby, so I actually wasn't really expecting anything at all... but what I got was perfect.



The first half of the day was actually pretty lazy (especially since I slept in so late). I was bringing a Key Lime Pie and a fruit tray with dip to my mother's house that evening. I had already made the pie the day before, so all I had to do was run to the store for some fresh fruit and cut it all up for the tray and make the dip. I took care of all that during the munchkin's nap. Once she woke up and we all got ready, we headed over to my parents house around 4:30pm.

We decided to have a really easy menu this year so we wouldn't have to do much work in the kitchen. We grilled filet mignon, choice of sweet potato or white and some grilled veggies. I also made some steak butter for the filets. It was delicious!

The rest of the afternoon was spent hanging out in the back yard and visiting. The weather was absolutely perfect.

My mom's parents were there. Below is a pic of them with the munchkin. I am pretty lucky to have such awesome grandparents. My grandma's birthday is always right around mother's day, so we celebrate that too.

My mom is one of the munchkin's most very favorite people. She absolutely adores her.  I think it's because she knows she can count on her to always act really silly and have lots of fun with her.  She's always been a pretty amazing mother, now she gets to be a pretty amazing grandma.

Getting all the cousins to line up and take a good picture is not an easy task.

Adding their mother's to the mix, made it pretty much impossible.

Throw in a grandma, and we are lucky to just get everyone's faces in the same direction.

It's kinda crazy now that me and my sisters are all moms.  Mother's Day this year definitely had a little bit more of a special meaning, with our girls being a little older and me being pregnant with another little baby girl.

I felt especially lucky to have such awesome sisters. I really love these bitches.

But ofcourse my most very favorite person in the whole wide world really is the one that made things extra special for me. I can't believe how lucky I am sometimes, to get to be the little munchkin's mommy. She really is such a blessing.

She really makes me feel like she feels the same way too!

I hope everyone else enjoyed their Mother's Day, whether with their mommies, with their kiddos or both.  And to all the mommies out there in bloggy world... HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!!

32 Weeks!! Other Updates and Finally, Some Belly Pics

I am officially 32 weeks along in my pregnancy as of today. Wow! I can't believe how close it is getting. I only have about 8 weeks left. I know it's going to go by so fast and be here before I know it... that's how this whole pregnancy has already been so far. 

All things considered, I am still feeling pretty good. I definitely have been having a few issues though. This pelvic pain thing (symphysis pubis disfunction) is a total bitch. I have been to a chiropractor twice, I just started going this past weekend, it seems it might be helping a little bit, but it's really too early to tell. He confirmed that I was definitely suffering from SPD and that he was sure it would clear up right after the baby was born. It was worse with this pregnancy because I already have had a baby and there wasn't as much support down below because of that. He also told me that although we could relieve some of my symptoms, they probably couldn't be alleviated completely until after I deliver.  I do some stretches that he showed me right when I wake up in the morning and that definitely helps me to get out of bed and move around with less discomfort. I have still been trying to walk at least a mile or two on the evenings I don't have a photo shoot and that really seems to help a lot. I am so grateful that the weather has been so nice.

I have been getting the worst leg cramps in the middle of the night, mostly in my right calf but a little in my left too. They actually get really bad early in the morning around 5 or 6 am. I woke up yesterday morning and it was the worst one yet. I was actually yelling out and crying really hard. It was awful! I knew it was a deficiency of some kind, as your body can leach things from places and use up a lot of your reserves to help with growing a baby, but I just wasn't sure what the problem was. I had the same issue while pregnant before, but this seemed much worse. I talked to a chiropractor friend who is sure that it is a magnesium deficiency. He recommended a supplement for it.  I started doing some research on that particular one and I am actually really excited to start using it. I have been reading a lot about magnesium lately anyway and how so many people are deficient in it and how many problems it can cause. I ordered it on Amazon and it should be arriving today. I can't wait to start using it and get some relief from these cramps! I really hope it helps.

Between the leg cramps, having to get up to pee every one to two hours and the little peanut moving around like crazy and waking me up all the time as well, I haven't really been getting very good sleep. I keep telling myself it is all to help me to prepare for her arrival. Since most likely, sleep will be even less then. Ahhh the joys of pregnancy....

So other then those things, I have actually been feeling really pretty amazing. I still have roughly 8 weeks or so left, so I know it's mostly likely down hill from here, but each day brings me closer to meeting this new baby girl and I am so excited about that! The munchkin has been talking about her a lot more too. She now refers to the nursery as the baby's room (calling her by her name) and she is constantly hugging and kissing my belly and talking to her. She will even tickle her... it's so funny! I tell her what a good big sister she is going to be and what an important job she will have. I am sure there will be some initial jealousy and I can't help but be a bit worried about that, but I am hopeful she will do okay.

Oh how I love this little girl. It's hard to imagine I am going to have to share all this love with another baby girl. I guess you just have more love to spread around. Cuz I definitely couldn't ever love her any less!

She really is growing into such a sweet and wonderful little person.  She has more and more personality every day and continually amazes me with all of her antics and views of the world. I think what I love most about her is how sweet and loving she is. I am excited to see what a loving big sis she will be!

My weight gain has completely stopped in the last few weeks. I think I have actually been losing some regular weight and gaining baby, so it has been averaging out. My pants have actually been fitting looser, while my shirts around my belly area have been getting tighter. I haven't been trying to, but once I realized this was happening, I have noticed a few things I have been doing differently. I haven't been eating as much honey or syrup in my baked goods (I have been using more stevia as my sweetener) and I have been snacking less in the evening before I go to bed. Nothing I was doing on purpose, but now that I can tell that is what was making me gain more weight then I had hoped, I will probably try to stick with it some. I am definitely still eating plenty of food and this baby is getting lots of nourishment! I just know how hard it was gaining so much weight the first time around and how much easier it would have been to deliver if I hadn't gained so much. I'll do anything to make labor easier!


This belly sure is getting big though huh?

So it feels like I am in the final stretch! I have picked up a few more things for the nursery, but we are waiting for Joe to start his school break before we really get in there and start hanging stuff on the wall and putting everything together. His finals are next week and then we can start getting some things done. I am so excited to finish things up in there and have everything all ready!

My friend Anna and my sis Amy are having a "Sprinkle" for me in a few weeks. We are going out to dinner with some of my girlfriends and really just have a night out. I am really looking forward to it!! It will be nice to have a girls night out before I become a temporary hermit for a while.


It's hard to believe I am going to have a newborn in the house again really really soon. I am excited for sure, but I am not gonna lie, I am also freaking out just a little!!