30 weeks

I'm blown away when I think about how fast 30 weeks have gone by, but of course 8-10 more sound like forever! I went to the doctor a week and a half ago for my glucose test and regular four week check up. Everything looked great and I never got a call about my glucose test-no news is good news so I am thankful for that! Walker's heartbeat was 140, right around where it has been almost the entire pregnancy. I had gained NINE pounds since my last appointment, which made me about have a heart attack but as good as we ate in Asheville, I shouldn't have been surprised. The doctor didn't even mention it, which either meant she knew better or she truly wasn't concerned. That puts me at a total of 21 pounds gained so far, which is still a few less than at this time with Gray but very close to my goal of 30 pounds, which isn't likely to happen at this point. I just hope I don't gain 10 plus pounds of fluid weight at the end like I did the first time around. Anywho, here's a little update on me at three-fourths of the way through my second pregnancy.

According to Baby Center, Walker now weighs almost 3 pounds and is a little over 15 and a half inches long.

I'm feeling-Big! But surprisingly pretty good most days, especially when compared to how I was feeling at this time with Gray. Praise God that I haven't had sciatic nerve problems with my back and that weird issue with my foot again. Praying those things both stay away for good. I am actually sleeping pretty good most nights, which is also way different than this time with Gray and I am very thankful for that. I wake up once or twice to go to the bathroom but the sleep I get before that is awesome. Some nights I have trouble getting back to sleep after going to the bathroom but overall I can't complain about the sleep situation (yet!). My back is starting to hurt some by the end of the day (though again, nothing like with Gray) and Walker seems to be even a little lower than Gray was, but I am not nearly as uncomfortable yet. The gym situation hasn't changed since my last update 5 weeks ago. I am doing good to make it there two or three times a week between Gray being sick, appointments and bad weather. I feel so much better when I have worked out and I'm hoping I'll be able to keep taking my classes for at least another month or so because I really feel like that has helped me to feel as good as I do this late in the pregnancy. I wish you could see the looks and hear the comments I get at the Y. Because my belly is already so big, I think people are really concerned that I could go into labor right in the middle of a squat during Body Pump class. I honestly dread the "when are you due?" question because of the reactions that always follow. But for the most part I laugh it off and just keep telling people that I make big babies and even bigger bellies ;)

Can't get enough/craving-Still popsicles, fruit, smoothies-anything cold and fruity. I've been popping mandarin oranges like they're candy. I've still had a bit of a sweet tooth but not as bad as the last few months. I'm still missing caffeine, Jimmy John's and sushi like crazy!

Movement-Walker is one very active little guy! And although at his size and mine, the movement can sometimes be uncomfortable, I LOVE feeling and watching his sweet little body parts poke out of my belly. Gray likes to put his hands on my belly because he's seen Paul and my mom do it when they are feeling Walker move, but if he has actually felt him move he hasn't seemed to understand what it was.

Big Brother update-I thought I'd add this in because I don't want to forget how precious Gray was when I was carrying his little brother. He loves to hug and kiss on my belly but still only with my shirt pulled up. He "shares" everything with him-tries to pour his sippy cup into my belly button and even makes a pretend sipping sound while doing so, brings Walker toys and puts them to my belly and he even tries to share his paci and snacks too, which is not only a Gray sacrifice, but also so very sweet to watch. Paul finished Gray's big boy bed and y'all-it is nothing short of amazing! I am so proud of him and could not be more pleased with how it turned out. He also got the IKEA furniture together and we plan on having his room wrapped up by this weekend because our house is going back on the market next week. I can't wait to post more about his room when we get it finished. For now, here is a sneak peek of the finished bed...

And here is a comparison of the picture we found on Pinterest and Paul's masterpiece...

Gray is really interested in his big boy room and already plays in there some and asks to go "night-night" in his "big bed". We've made a big deal talking about his new room in hopes of it making it more exciting and the transition easier. Because of that, his new favorite thing to say a million times a day is "I'm big!". We will probably transition him in the next few weeks or so because we don't want it to be new at all by the time Walker is born. We've told him a lot that since he has a new room, baby Walker is going to have his old baby room. Other than that and knowing that there is a baby brother in my belly, he definitely can't fully understand it at his age. We really want to do some special things and treasure these last two months with Gray as only child. Not that life won't be even sweeter, but it will no doubt be different and even busier. But I am just so excited to see him be a big brother!

And now, the belly update...large and in charge, y'all!

A comparison of me with Gray at 30 weeks and now at 30 weeks...

My next appointment is on April 9th and is the first of every other week visits. It might be weird, but I actually like going to the doctor when I'm pregnant so I'm looking forward to going more often now. Maybe it's because it makes it seem like it's going by faster? I hope to be back with one or two more pregnancy updates before Walker makes his arrival.

Surprise Babymoon!

Paul and I had talked briefly about wanting to get away for a night or two before Walker was born but had kind of let the idea go/decided not to do anything. Much to my surprise, he planned a two night getaway to Asheville at the Grove Park Inn. He wanted so bad to keep it a surprise until the day we were leaving but he knows me well and knew I'd want to be prepared and planned for it so he told me several nights before we went. The Grove Park hosts a Christian marriage conference each year that we always hear about on the radio and Paul decided he was going for it! The GPI offers rooms at half price if you attend the conference, which was the only way we could ever afford to stay there. Paul had never been before and I'd only been to look around for a day with some girlfriends years ago. I'd actually mentioned a few months ago that it would be a dream for us to go one day. The conference is always held on Sunday and Monday, probably because GPI isn't as crowded on those days and they are giving such a good "deal" on the rooms. Even though the conference was over at lunch time on Monday, the hotel offered the discounted rate for two nights, so Paul planned for us to stay Sunday and Monday night. He'd talked to his principal about taking two days off and worked all the details out with my family and Lindsey about taking care of Gray-all to who we are SO thankful for!!!

The first conference session started at 4:00 on Sunday so we'd planned on leaving early and making the most of our two days. But our power had been out for almost two days due to the ice storm so we hadn't gotten to do laundry, pack and all that necessary stuff. We got gone around 1:30 and made it there just in time for the first session. The couple leading the conference were Jay and Laura Laffoon, who I had never heard of but they were hilarious and had some awesome things to say and teach on about marriage. We had a two hour break between the first and second session so we checked into our hotel and headed downtown to a eat dinner at Tupelo Honey, which was a very popular local restaurant recommended to us by everyone who knew we were going to Asheville. It did not disappoint! I can see us driving to Asheville just to eat there again one day.

View from our room!

Perhaps the best crab cakes and mac and cheese I have ever had in my life!!

Paul got some kind of nutty fried chicken goodness.

And definitely the best blueberry dessert of any kind that I have ever had!

The evening conference session was led by the guest speaker, Gary Smalley. Paul and I read two of his books in our pre-marriage counseling and found them to be very interesting and helpful but we really had no idea who he was or had heard much of him since then. He is a 73 year old man that about had us peeing in our pants the whole time. He mostly ended up telling his own stories but also had some good things to say about communication in marriage and valuing and honoring your spouse.

Monday there were two morning sessions, one more by Jay and Laura and another by Dr. Smalley. They were both awesome and fun and even though Paul and I are blessed to be going through a somewhat "easy" time in our marriage, we left rejuvenated and motivated to be better spouses. I wish all married couples, including us, could attend a marriage conference once every year. Anyway, it was over by noon which gave us almost an entire day to venture around Asheville. We headed to Biltmore Village and had lunch at Cantina, a local Tex/Mex restaurant that as Paul would say, "makes you want to smack somebody". I'd eaten there one time years ago but it was even better than I remembered. Are we the only people that take pictures of our food?!

I can't even remember all of the things that were on my salad but it sure was delish!

Paul enjoyed shrimp and pork soft tacos.

We walked around Biltmore Village for a while and then headed back to explore more at the GPI. The resort is huge and beautiful and we wanted to just relax and soak it in. It was almost 70 degrees, which was perfect for sitting outside and enjoying the view.

This is the original part of the hotel and where our room was. They also have two wings of rooms but if you ever go, I'd recommend staying in the old side!

That night we ate dinner at one of the hotel restaurants called Edison. Paul had made reservations for a table right next to a window so we could watch the sunset over the mountains. It was perfect and the food was outstanding, though we were so hungry we ate before we remembered to take any pictures

View from dinner

After dinner we headed downtown to a local dessert spot called French Broad Chocolate Lounge, mostly for the experience since we were so full we could barely walk. We ended up taking half of our dessert back to the hotel but it was fun anyway.

When we got to the Grove Park on Sunday, Paul told me he had one more surprise for me. He'd booked a pedicure at their spa for Tuesday morning. I could not have been more excited! The Grove Park is known for their amazing spa but I knew we wouldn't be able to afford couples massage or anything like that so I wasn't expecting it at all. I hadn't had a pedicure since Gray was born and at this point I can barely bend over enough to pain my toenails. Needless to say, I was SO excited about it. The pedicure was scheduled for Tuesday morning but if you have anything done at the spa, you get to stay there all day if you want to and swim in the mineral pools, or just use their shower facilities, which I'd heard were amazing. We got up really early Tuesday morning so we could go eat breakfast before my appointment. I was downstairs sitting by the fireplace while Paul went to get the car and got a text from Lindsey that said Gray had thrown up and we needed to get home. He had another cold virus when we left but had no signs of any stomach thing and Lindsey said he'd been fine the night before so I just couldn't believe it. Not to mention this was the first time he had EVER thrown up before. It broke our hearts not being there for him and knowing Lindsey was having to deal with that. So we skipped breakfast, cancelled my pedicure appointment and headed home as soon as we could. We got to Lindsey's about 10:45 and Gray was asleep in a stroller, something he hasn't done since he was six months old. He was happy to see his mommy, but other than that he was a mess. He was so miserable and ill and there was almost nothing we could do to make it better. He wouldn't eat or drink anything. I rocked him to sleep and he napped for over four hours! He was still pretty ill when he got up but managed to eat and drink a little. He never threw up again so it's hard to say what was going on but he was all out of sorts for several days after we got home.

Despite having to come home early, we had a wonderful time and are so thankful to have had an opportunity to get away, just the two of us, before life gets even crazier with a newborn in just a little over two months! A huge thank you to my family and the Sowers for taking care of our boy so we could enjoy our time away. And especially to my sweet hub for planning such a thoughtful, wonderful babymoon. I am far more blessed than I will ever deserve!

Thursday Randoms

I continue to have a few posts in draft mode and probably all but one will stay there (a post about Gray lately). I just haven't had much time or energy for blogging lately. And honestly, the reason for being here now is probably so I have an excuse not to get up and clean or do laundry while Gray is napping.

I am 27 weeks pregnant today. Some baby sources say you're in the third trimester at 26, some say 27 and some 28. I'll go in the middle and say that today I welcome the third trimester. I have mixed feelings about being here. I'm not excited about getting even bigger and the uncomfortableness that comes along with it but I am more and more ready every day to meet this sweet little guy that I've been growing the past 6 months. I can't wait to fall in love all over again. I cannot wait to know what he'll look like, how big he will be and how sweet I think Gray is going to be with him (for the most part). I cannot wait to kiss his chubby cheeks a million times a day. I can't wait to dress my boys in matching button up shirts on Sunday (we only have a few matching things so we will be seeing them repeated quite often).

Paul is almost done with Gray's big boy bed. He is working on the drawers that are under the bed now and that will be the hardest part. I am so proud of his hard work on it and I can't wait to see it finished. My mom is keeping Gray on Saturday so we can go to IKEA and get a dresser, book shelf and some other little things to complete his room. I think I have decided on his bedding but wanted to wait to order it until I make sure IKEA doesn't have something I like better or that's much cheaper. My mom was very generous to pay for four canvases that will be hung in his room. We used pictures from an African safari I went on my second time going to Kenya. We got one of elephants, a zebra, a giraffe and a mama and baby monkey. They turned out so good and I can't wait to get them hung.

Our house has been off the market since we left for Kenya. Our last realtor was our least favorite yet. We met with one last week and want to meet with one more before deciding on a FIFTH realtor as we have recently approached our FIFTH year of trying to sell our house. Paul has to finish the bed before we can list it because there is wood and tools and saw dust everywhere. We want to get Gray's big boy room mostly finished and do a few minor upgrades to the house before officially listing it again, hopefully by the end of March. That's going to make for some very busy weekends!

I feel like I've said something similar before, but please know that you should never, ever under any circumstances, start a greeting to a pregnant woman with "wow!" Y'all might not believe some of the comments I've already gotten if I told you. And I still have almost three months to go! Two weeks ago someone told me I looked like I was going to pop. I know my belly is big, but pop?! Already?! My response was "You ain't seen nothing yet!" (She didn't know me when I was pregnant with Gray). And that was coming from someone my age who has been pregnant before. I believe if this continues I'll have to go into hiding even earlier this time. ;)

I am OVER this winter! It's been one of the worst ones we've had in a long time. I love snow and am so glad we got one big one this year but I am more than ready to move on to long, warm days spent outside playing with my boy and wearing flip flops. Tuesday we got a little snow and school was out and they are calling for ice tonight and tomorrow. Between the winter germs and weather, I still can't seem to get to the gym more than once or twice a week and my mood and energy are needing more than that.

There is a really sweet little voice calling for "Mommy! Mommy!", so I reckon I'll go now. Hopefully a big boy room post will be coming soon!

Happy almost Friday, y'all.