35 Weeks!

How Far Along: 35 Weeks 4 Days

Total Weight Gain: 35 lbs approx. 

Milestones: Baby's hearing is fully developed and his testes are fully descended!

Baby Is The Size Of: a Butternut Squash

Sleep: Sleep is awful. I cannot get comfortable...jumbo pillow or no pillow. I just want to sleep on my back!!!!!!!! I've also been up thinking/stressing about some other things lately which doesn't help! I seems like when I get up to use the bathroom around 3am that I never go back to sleep. My mind/body won't let me!

Best Moment This Week: Getting to have lunch with a great friend who is also pregnant! Tim also fixed the closet door in the nursery so it stays shut and hung up the hook rack. I also bought a super adorable lion hat for him to wear in his newborn pictures!

Miss Anything?: Still miss my non-pregnant body right now. I love my pregnant body and how amazing the whole thing is, but I want to be able to bend over and pick things up. I want to be able to walk up the stairs or get in and out of bed without getting winded. 4 1/2 weeks left!

Movement?:Movement has slowed down a little. He still moves a lot but it's so tight in there and he's making his way down for his big reveal. When he does move, it's more like he's turning over or adjusting instead of kicking and frankly, it kind of hurts. Sometimes he ''tickles'' under my belly. That's a weird feeling. 

Food Cravings: Still no cravings and still hard to eat big meals. I can't weight for the pressure to be off my stomach/ribs/lungs/intestines.... 

Things That Make Me Queasy: No queasiness overall!

Gender: BOY

Labor Signs: No true labor signs necessarily, but having contractions daily and can feel my pelvic bone stretching and getting ready. I think I may be slowly losing my mucus plug as well. For some of you that may seem like TMI, but it's funny how being pregnant, you find yourself using words like perineum and mucus plug/discharge etc. without hesitation!! :/

Symptoms: Basically, my body is ready to be done with being pregnant! Shortness of breath,aches, pains, tiredness, I have it all! I guess I can't complain too much, because it could be worse, but I'm ready for him to be here and to not feel like this anymore!  

Inny or Outy: Out!

Wedding Band On or Off:  Off, but I can still wear it. It just bugs me since it's tighter than it used to be.  

Mood Most Of The Time: Happy overall. This was a long week. My emotions are obviously a little more sensitive than normal and I had my moments of weakness this week. Little things are a big deal lately and this is a very stressful time of the year at school. I'm just trying to relax and take things one day at a time...though I am trying to get ahead and things ready in case I do go into labor and have to have a sub come in at any given moment!

Looking Forward To: Graysen being here and my shower on Saturday!

My Pregnancy Lifesavers!

Here are a few things that have helped me tremendously throughout this pregnancy. There are many more, but these are the things that popped into my head first.

Bolthouse Farms Juices: They are packed with vitamins, nutrients, fruits and veggies. They are very similar to Naked Juices, but Naked Juices are only partially pasteurized and so you shouldn't really drink them while pregnant since you are supposed to only have pasteurized things. 

Goldfish Crackers: These really helped when I was so nauseous in the beginning. I still am really liking them now at 35 weeks. Well, I've always liked them, but they are a good grab and go snack. 

Oh Kraft Macaroni and Cheese...how I love thee! I know that I am approaching 30 years of age in a couple years, but I still love Macaroni and Cheese. This was one food that I actually could stomach while having morning all day sickness!

Leachco Back 'n Belly Pillow: This pillow was a God sent! Sleep now is going to be miserable no matter what...pillow or no pillow, but this pillow helped so much. I'm glad I got it as early as I did. It can be used for breastfeeding later as well. My husband will tell you that this is why we had to upgrade to a King Sized bed, but it was well worth it!!

Ina May's Guild to Childbirth: A friend recently gave me this book to read and it was so inspiring. Ina May is a well-known midwife and her stories are so empowering. If you are expecting, you should really read this!

What To Expect When You're Expecting: Ok...so some refer to this as the "pregnancy Bible". I did/do read it religiously every week to check on baby's progress and my symptoms. It's very informative and pretty much has everything you'll need to know as you are going through these major changes. 

Honey Nut Cheerios: Another staple in my diet...especially when I was sick. Cereal has always been one of my favorite foods. 

Edy's Fruit Bars: These ROCK MY WORLD! My husband loves them too! They also tasted great when those bouts of nausea would come on.  

Maternity Cardigans: Ok...any cardigan in general. I wore a ton of cardigans before pregnant, and now that I'm pregnant, they are still a staple in my wardrobe. I have a couple "maternity" ones, but I am wearing a lot of the ones that I had before I was pregnant. They seem to flatter you while being very forgiving! Not to mention...they are easy to throw on over a maternity t-shirt which I will talk about next. 

Maternity T-Shirts: Liz Lange for Target has some great maternity t-shirts. I pretty much live in maternity t-shirts and cardigans. I do did still wear long-sleeve t-shirts that were just longer in length for the longest time, but now...I pretty much have to wear "maternity" ones. I love them though...they are easy to throw on over a maternity/long tank top and then throw a cardigan over the top. I bought a few other maternity tops, but it's the t-shirts that I live in! 

Maternity/Long Tank Tops: They are a MUST! They work great under t-shirts, cardigans, etc. The ones from Target are so soft and wash up so nice. I basically wear one to work every day and then sleep in one every night!

LifeFactory Glass Water Bottles: I LOVE my LifeFactory Water Bottle. They have various sizes and also baby bottles of various sizes. They are glass and then have a silicone cover. You throw them in the dishwasher, cover and all and you are good to go. It makes me feel so much better about a reusable water bottle than the plastic ones do. Also, I'm kind of clumsy and I drop mine often...the silicone cover really does protect it! I love the colors they come in too!

My Camera: Tim bought me a Canon Powershot SX40 HS for Christmas. It was the best gift ever! He really surprised me with it! I was mad at first because I thought he spent way too much on it, but it was so worth it! I use it all the time! We needed something to take pictures/video of the baby when he arrives. Little did I know that it would be documenting my whole pregnancy! 

Last but certainly not least....my husband, friends and family! They have been so supportive during this whole pregnancy. We have had a lot of ups and downs and they have been there every step of the way. My husband has been WONDERFUL throughout this whole thing. When I was uber sick and crabby, he was there to make me a PB & J sandwich, bring it to me on the couch, force me to eat it and then clean the house. He went to basically every doctor appointment, except when he had a game. (He coaches football and softball.) He put/puts up with my crabbiness and never hardly ever complains! 

My friend and family were awesome as well. I got the joy of sharing this pregnancy with several friends. It's so nice to have someone going through the same thing at the same time as you. You need someone to bounce things off of and vent/downright bitch to. Someone who is going through the same gross things you are and understands. Believe me...pregnancy is downright yucky at times! 

Thank you to everyone who has been there through this all!

MB

April Showers Bring....Gifts for Graysen!!

April brought two baby showers for us. All within a week actually. The wonderful staff at school put on a shower for me and Marit and then my gracious sister-in-law threw one for me for Tim's side of the family. I am overwhelmed at the generosity of everyone!

Here are the highlights!

Marit, myself and some party goers at our shower at school.

Marit is in the blue shirt...I'm in the denim jacket for those that haven't been following.

"Welcome Baby Graysen & John!" Cake made by my wonderful para, Kaynel!

Oh...great picture! :/ You can see Baby John in the corner. 

Marit opening gifts! 

Graysen and John got so many matching/coordinating outfits! They will be the best dressed boys around! Even outfits that Marit got that I didn't, were outfits that we already had for Graysen! Too funny! We'll have to get some pictures together!

"Who's that baby face?" 

Everyone brought in a baby picture and we all had to guess who was who. 

Guess who's number 5 in the corner??? That's me!!

Number 18 = Tim!

It's tradition at school to take "The Pregnancy Photo"! Everyone puts a ball in their shirt...except the pregnant woman/women! Marit is the tall one in the middle in the back row and I'm on the end in the striped cardigan!

Here is a close up. 

Another close up!

Baby John waiting to go home to enjoy all of his awesome gifts!!!

My sister-in-law, Angie threw a baby shower a few days later at her restaurant/coffee bar. 

This was a game like "The Price is Right". I did pretty well. I do go shopping a lot though so that gave me a leg up in the game! :) 

Cute animal theme!!

Name that Baby Food!! There were 8 different baby foods that we had to try and name. 

Some more baby food to try!

Animal print paper lanterns were hung all over the ceiling. 

All my cravings!! :) Tacos, Cheese, Chips, Cinnamon Roll Ice Cream Cake!

My gracious sister-in-law

Her daughters Katie and Aly! Notice how short I am!

Julie and Addie tasting baby food!

Waiting to hear the results of the baby food test. My mom won. She only got one wrong. She put squash instead of sweet potatoes!

Playing "The Price is Right". I only had 15 seconds!!

Oooooh.....so close!

Sorting sock game. Note: I don't even sort my own socks most of the time. They all go into the basket and we dig for matches! Good thing we have a mesh bag to wash Graysen's socks in so that they don't get lost!

Angie got Graysen a giraffe cuddle blanket with his name! So cute!

Thanks Grandma Peggy (Tim's mom) for our new bath center! 

Grandma Armstrong (my mom) got us Swaddle Wraps, a new outfit and a head support for his car seat that is in the shape of a lion!

What a fun couple showers. Thanks to everyone who attended/put on the showers! My best friend, Cassie is putting on another one for friends in a week and a half and my mom/sisters are throwing one in June after he is born. Goodness...he is spoiled already!!

Graysen's World Traveler Nursery

Graysen's nursery is done! Well, except for one rack of hooks and one shelf to hang. Here are some pictures to show you all what we have been working on!

I am so excited about this nursery! I love the colors, the theme, everything! It's my favorite room in the house I think!

I got those paper balls at Hancock Fabric. They are Martha Stewart's Brand. 

It came with 6 in 3 different blue/green colors. 

You can see the rack of hooks and the shelf sitting in on our changing pad that still need to be hung up in this corner. That will get done this week. (Hopefully!) I should have taken a picture of the top drawer. It's all organized with everything needed for diaper changes. The cute gDiapers look great all lined up! We also have some disposable newborn diapers which we will start with rather than using the cloth right away. We don't want the dreaded "black stuff" all over them! Plus, someone gave us a bunch. 

I love the vintage map we hung above the crib. Being teachers, we feel it's never too early for educational things like geography! :)

This shows the "Oh the places you'll go!" sign that I made to fit our "world traveler" theme. It's hard to see but the paper looks like an ancient treasure map. 

Here is the chair that has newly covered cushions. I love them. They match the curtains. I can't wait to sit here and rock with Graysen!

Another picture of the chair but you can see the zebra footstool. 

Nevermind the hole at the top of the wall. The vent cover needs to be put back yet I guess also. 

31 Bags to hold all of his burp rags, books, toys and diaper supplies like extra inserts and wipes. 

That empty space is where the small CD player is going but it's in the car right now to take to the hospital. 

Custom artwork that I made. Handmade paper in a reclaimed wood frame. 

Here is a close up of the quilt that I made for his room too! 

Close up of the map. 

I love this little wicker lamp with a low watt light bulb to use during feedings and such so that we don't have to turn the bright light on. A small raku pottery pot adds to the world traveler feel and you can't have enough books!

Shadow, our miniature poodle, loves the room too! He checks the crib every morning and night to see if there is a baby in there yet. He sometimes just lays on the floor in there...waiting!