18... 19 Weeks - The Bad and the Good

Wow, we're almost halfway there!

Getting bigger!

As you might have noticed, I missed my 18 week update! Last Saturday, our basement flooded with an inch of sewer water when the city sewer line backed up, and it took most of my weekend trying to coordinate help and manage the situation! It was quite the disaster.

Of course things go wrong when your spouse is away... but I wasn't quite expecting this. Luckily, I had professional help come within a few hours after noticing the sewage backup! The local plumber, the city sewer workers, and someone from a cleanup/restoration company ALL came Saturday night. The next morning, the cleanup/restoration team returned to strip all the flooring, carpet, and remove contaminated drywall from the downstairs. I was impressed with how promptly we were taken care of! I'm glad our landlord was quick to hire help.

As tempting as it was to be involved and salvage more of our stuff before it got wet, I had to keep myself away from the situation as much as possible. Being pregnant, I needed to be extra careful to avoid the contaminated water full of bacteria and viruses!

Luckily, we don't keep many household goods in the downstairs basement area, so we had limited damage to our personal belongings. Our camping packs got a little wet on the bottom, but nothing we can't bleach and sanitize. We lost maybe $100 worth of supplies - it could've been way worse.

Now that our downstairs is completely torn up, we're getting estimates from a few contractors to replace the flooring and drywall. I'm glad everything is clean, but I'm anxious for our laundry room and den to have a floor!

My parents are visiting right now, so it's nice to have some good to offset the bad! We've had fun going to restaurants and taking Zoie to the playground. Zoie calls them "Ga" for grandma, and "Pa" for grandpa. She wakes up in the morning exclaiming "Ga-Pa-Ga-Pa-Ga-PA!" and runs to knock on their door. It's so fun to see them bonding again after several months apart!

How far along are you? 19 weeks  as of yesterday.
 
How big is Baby? About the size of a large mango! Six inches from head to rump, and weighs 8.5 ounces. He/she is growing hair, kidneys are producing urine, and the baby is now developing a waxy coating called vernix caseosa all over his/her skin as a protectant from the amniotic fluid.

Weight Gain? My current weight is 131, so I'm up 5 pounds total. I just checked my 19 week blogpost from my first pregnancy, I gained exactly 5 pounds by 19 weeks as well! Right on track.

Gender? Our sonogram is scheduled for April 16th!

Maternity Clothes? My middle is definitely getting bigger, so my maternity pants are quite comfortable now. Haven't really started wearing maternity tops yet - my looser regular tops work fine.

Sleep? Sleep isn't so great. Even when Zoie sleeps through the night, I'll still wake up several times because I'm thirsty or my throat is dry. My allergies and congestion make it tough to breath through my nose at night.

Movement? Movement is getting stronger! I can feel kicks from the outside sometimes when I press my hand on my abdomen, but they're pretty gentle since the baby is still tiny.

Food Cravings? Not really, things have been pretty normal. Oddly, I'm not craving citrus this pregnancy the same way I craved it with Zoie. I have noticed that tomato-y things have been especially delicious though.

Labor Signs? Nothing.

Symptoms? Pregnancy allergies are the worst! It's been over 3 weeks now of constant sneezing, runny nose, congestion, sinus pressure, itchy eyes... Some days are better than others, but since the warm weather arrived here in Kansas my allergy symptoms have been rough! Last spring, I didn't have ANY allergies, but two years ago when I was pregnant with Zoie I did experience mild springtime allergies in Kansas. I hope they disappear when we move to California this summer!

What I miss? Starting to miss my old body. The in-between bump stage is always awkward. And since this is my second pregnancy, my veins (especially on the right side of my body) are really getting stressed with the added pressure of a growing baby. My right leg has a couple awesome-looking varicose veins, and a few sunburst-patterned spider veins. YAY.

Best moment(s) of the week? It's been nice to have the house full of family while James is away, I'm grateful to not be alone! I'm pretty blessed to have my in-laws living close by AND my parents visiting right now.

What I am looking forward to? I can't wait to be able to talk to James again - he's been in a 2-week training mission with no cell phone, so I really miss him! Hopefully by Friday he'll be able to contact me!

Cheers,

Martha

17 Weeks - Being a Solo-Mama & Playground Woes

Here we go, back to being a solo-mama for a month. Nothing compared to deployment, but it's still a challenge!

Had to take my own pic...
17 week selfie with Zoie!

James headed out late Thursday night to spend a month in a training session. Hopefully this will be the last time I'm without him for a long time! Our future Army plans don't involve jobs that deploy or have long training rotations. This is wonderful for our growing family - we need daddy around!

Of course the day after James leaves, Zoie gets her first serious injury on the playground. She tripped over her feet while running on the soft green turf, and just happened to fall forward and hit her eyebrow on the play structure she was about to climb onto! Blood was everywhere, tears were falling,  and I was scared she might need stitches!

We were a mile away from home, with just the stroller, a bottle of water, and an extra sweatshirt. I used the sweatshirt and water to mop up her blood and try to stop the bleeding. Luckily, a nice lady at the playground who happened to live close by ran up to her house and grabbed a baggie of ice for us. Once Zoie had calmed down and we got the bleeding to stop, I realized her cut wasn't quite so serious. I carried her the 1 mile back to our house, while pushing our little dog Brownie in the stroller. We must've looked pretty peculiar strolling by in the neighborhood!

I stopped by our neighbor's house who was a nurse, just to get her opinion about Zoie needing stitches or not. She assured me Zoie would be just fine after I cleaned it with a bit of soap and water. That was a relief! Can you imagine a toddler trying to leave stitches on her face alone!?

A few days later and Zoie's cut is healing just fine. It makes me re-think my preparedness when we go out - I'm going to carry a few antiseptic wipes, little gauze pads, and bandaids. I haven't had a first-aid kit in my diaper bag or stroller, but I think it's time to carry at least a few essentials!

Back to the baby #2 show - overshadowed by Zoie's antics! Our 17-week tiny baby is busy growing its skeleton from soft cartilage into hard bones! He/she is also starting to develop sweat glands and his/her sense of hearing.

How far along are you? 17 weeks as of Friday.
 
How big is Baby? Our little baby already weighs 5-6 ounces! He/she is over 5 inches long from head to bottom, so imagine an onion or a turnip.

Weight Gain? My weight continues to fluctuate! I weight the same as last week, 129.5lb. Total gain = 3.5lb

Gender? One month and we'll know! I'm still predicting boy. Which means I'll probably be wrong :)

Maternity Clothes? Still not bumping out much, so my regular shirts are fine. I can't fit into most of my jeans without using my BeBand though. Gotta keep that top button unfastened :)

Sleep? Up and down. Depends on how Zoie sleeps. It's a little lonely without James at the moment, so I've been letting Brownie snuggle in bed... shhhh!

Movement? I feel movement every day! A little kick here and there, or sometimes I feel a little pressure as our baby shifts around.

Food Cravings? I wish I could drink more coffee. I'm limiting myself to a latte one or twice a week! Really, I could drink coffee all day long. Decaf just isn't worth it though. Bring on the tea!

Labor Signs? Nope.

Symptoms? Well, I got re-tested and still have Gardnerella bacteria. My home remedy of apple cider vinegar didn't work. I drank two tablespoons every day for over 2 weeks! *Sigh* oh well. Only 5 days of antibiotics and I'll be done.

What I miss? James!

Best moment(s) of the week? We got Zoie a slide for our front deck. It's life-changing! Morning till dusk we slide down the slide! Her Bitty Baby and Spiderman action figure also enjoy the slide.

What I am looking forward to? Lot of fun things this week - dressing Zoie up for St. Patty's Day, day trip to IKEA with my mother-in-law (who else loves their shopping carts!?), and my parents flying in for a visit next week!

Cheers,

Martha

16 Weeks - Enjoying 2nd Trimester

Randomly wearing the same
shirt as last time at 16 weeks!

16 weeks, yahoo!

This has been a great week! I'm feeling good, I've had several nights of good sleep, and I'm enjoying more baby kicks.

Our Kansas weather has finally turned warm, and it's been life-changing! We've been outside every day going on walks, BBQing and hanging out on our deck, visiting with neighbors, and of course, going to the playground! Zoie loves being outside, and it's such a relief not to be cooped up inside anymore.

Zoie is growing into quite a decisive little toddler. Lately she's been very opinionated with little things like putting on shoes or a sweater, taking a bath (or being done with the bath), and brushing her teeth (or wanting to continue brushing forever). Little things can quickly become huge issues with big drama! It's kind of funny, but can be frustrating for us of course. We try to use humor and redirecting to keep the peace. She definitely doesn't want to listen to logic at this stage!

Zoie also started taunting our little dog. She'll take Brownie's toy and tease her with it, but she'll get mad if Brownie actually takes it. Sometimes Zoie gets a little rough with Brownie because she isn't playing the way Zoie wants her to play! I'm envisioning some big sister drama with her little sibling in the future... Oh well, one day at a time!

How far along are you? 16 weeks as of Friday.
 
How big is Baby? Baby #2 is about 4 1/2 inches long from head to rump, and weighs 3 1/2 ounces! About the size of an avocado.

Weight Gain? My weight fluctuates so much! I weigh half a pound less than last week. Total gain is 3.5 lb.

Gender? I seriously can't wait to find out! Our sonogram is scheduled for April 16th. We might possibly reschedule for a few days earlier, but it depends on James' schedule.

Maternity Clothes? Still wearing my looser jeans and regular shirts. The weather just turned warm, so I started wearing my favorite maternity cropped jeans. They slide down a bit a the moment, but they're so comfortable!

Sleep? Lately, Zoie has been sleeping really well most nights! Which means I've been sleeping much better too. Zoie has started waking up in the morning and playing by herself for 20 minutes before knocking on her door for me to come get her. I definitely enjoy the extra time for myself.

Movement? This week, I've noticed much more movement! This baby is getting strong. It won't be long before we'll be able to feel movement from outside my belly, which will be SO fun to share with James and Zoie!

Food Cravings? Not much has changed, and I'm enjoying most food right now. Even if I had cravings, I'm too busy with Zoie to think much about them. We don't eat a lot of grains in our family, but I have noticed that when I do eat them, I crave them even more! Gluten can be addicting. Most days I try to stay away.

Labor Signs? Nothing.

Symptoms? Is my skin glowing yet? I'm waiting.

What I miss? I would say alcohol, but I've been having a great time being the DD. This Saturday we went to our city's annual "Fake Patty's Day" celebration, a street party infused with drunken college kids and bars packed with DJs spinning Pitbull and Ludacris all afternoon long. It was really fun! My lemonade and orange juice drinks were fabulous. (FYI, Zoie was at home with her Papa!)

Best moment(s) of the week? James' parents watched Zoie for us a couple times so we could get out with our friends, and it was awesome to have some adult time! Ahhhhh it's refreshing to revisit our young pre-baby days.

What I am looking forward to? I'm looking forward to more warm weather this week! James is leaving soon for training, so we'll miss him for a while. Looking forward to spending as much time with him as I can this week!

Cheers,

Martha

15 Weeks - Starting to Prep for Baby #2!

A very comfy outfit!

15 weeks! Our little baby is developing taste buds right now!

Weeks seem to be flying by. I'm going to blink and all of a sudden I'll be 30-something weeks and nesting like crazy!

We're moving from Kansas to California in a few months, so most of our baby preparation will wait until we get to our new home. However, we did buy a double stroller a few weeks ago! After browsing Craigslist for a few weeks, I found a Phil and Ted's Vibe stroller! I bargained for a great deal, and we're pretty happy with our new stroller. It has big inflatable wheels that roll smoothly, and there are several seating configurations for two kids. The city we're moving to has a Stroller Strides fitness class, so I'm ready to be a fit mama! All we need is the newborn Cocoon attachment and we'll be set.

I've also been thinking a lot about sleeping arrangements and room-sharing. Our new baby will sleep in a mini crib by our bed for the first several months, but I think by 6 months we'll be ready to transition our baby to his/her own room. We had Zoie sleeping on her floor bed in her room at 6 months old, which worked out really well.

So I'm wondering, would it work to have two floor beds in a shared room? Would either kiddo interfere with the other's sleep? We could try a real crib for the second baby, but I'm not a huge fan. It's hard to carefully lower a sleeping baby deep into a crib when I'm only 5'2! And what about easy nighttime nursing laying down on the baby's bed?

Perhaps it would work if we elevated Zoie's mattress with a small bed or frame. At least then the new baby wouldn't be able to crawl up and climb on Zoie when they're both (supposed to be) sleeping.

Oh well, lots to think about! Here's this week's pregnancy update:

How far along are you? 15 weeks as of Friday.
 
How big is Baby? Our little baby is about 4 inches long, and weighs about 2.5 ounces. He/she is the size of an apple.

Weight Gain? 4 pounds so far.

Gender? We have to wait a few more weeks! Still predicting a boy. With Zoie we got to find out the gender at 18 weeks, but with this baby we'll have to wait until after 20 weeks.

Maternity Clothes? I've been wearing my slightly looser jeans and leggings and staying pretty comfortable. Tried on my Gap maternity jeans, definitely not big enough for those yet.

Sleep? Some nights I sleep deeply, other nights not as much. Still going to the bathroom at least twice per night! I definitely won't miss that about pregnancy.

Movement? I still don't notice the movement very often, but here and there I feel a little bit of pressure and pokes.

Food Cravings? I've re-discovered fried eggs. YUM! Other than that, there's not much I've craving or averse to. The taste of salt is pretty intense for me, so I've been avoiding really salty food. I often need James to taste whatever I'm cooking to make sure I've seasoned it enough. It's funny, my intense taste of salt is one of the first pregnancy signs I experienced! I knew I was pregnant even before my test read positive.

Labor Signs? Nope, nothing yet.

Symptoms? My emotions run all over the place. I can get upset about the dumbest things.

What I miss? I miss shopping for regular clothes. Since I'm not bumping out yet, it's easy to forget I'm pregnant and be tempted to buy cute clothes. But that seems a little pointless right now...

Best moment(s) of the week? My sister-in-law and her family visited for a few days this last week, and we had a lot of fun hanging out with them. Zoie loved having playdates with her cousins at the library, discovery center, and open gym! We all got to enjoy a few dinners together too. It was sad to say goodbye!

What I am looking forward to? After several inches of snow this weekend, we're getting warm weather next weekend. It's supposed to be in the mid-50's. Dog park, playground, and long walks here we come! Maybe even the zoo?

Cheers,

Martha