31 weeks

Peyton turned this week! She is now head down and loves to punch my bladder just as much as she liked to kick it. Stinker. Her kicks are getting STRONG and my ribs are certainly not thanking her any, though it is pretty fun to feel them from the outside. She also gets tons of hiccups (one day I counted that she had them 7 different times).

I'm really starting to "feel" pregnant now. Not that I didn't before, but when I used to imagine being pregnant, I think it was this stage that I imagined. :) Where people notice your belly and don't have to wonder if you're pregnant, where you can feel (and see) the baby moving around, where you're in that "getting ready" stage...

After the baby shower I did about 5 loads of laundry, I swear. Folding all of those blankets and sorting tiny clothes by size was fun. ;)

I did a lot of reading up on labor and delivery this week (What to Expect When You're Expecting). I think I read the breastfeeding section twice through because I am SO determined to be successful at that and I want to be armed with a huge arsenal of tips and pointers when I start. Steve and I also had a conversation about breastfeeding and how important it is to me and how he can best support me in that (Jordan wasn't breastfed and I don't think Steve realized how important it was to me). I have been thinking a lot about a birth plan but haven't gotten it onto paper yet.

I fall asleep every night on my left side, hugging a body pillow between my knees and slightly under my belly. During the night I flip quite a few times from left to right and back again and I am up at 3:00 every night to go pee.

I have gained around 22 pounds at this point and it's basically all in my belly. ;)

Baby shower!

My mom (with help from my sister and cousin Theresa) threw me an incredibly fun and special baby shower! And looking back, I think she really had a blast doing it. ;)

The centerpieces were my old beanie babies from when I was a kid, along with little dishes of chocolates and various candies. 

Gifts! I really wish I had thought to take another picture before we loaded the car at the end of the shower... The size of the pile could have been described as "ridiculous". ;) But we felt SO blessed! The diaper stacker, quilt and burp cloths to the left in this picture were made by my Grandma Schwindt. The red bucket and yellow basket were from my mom and contained some of my old baby clothes (memories!) and my handmade baby blankets. Very special!

The guest book was one of our family favorites - The Sneetches (and other stories) by Dr. Seuss.

The room! It was so pretty!

 The is the onesie decorating station! Instead of playing silly shower games we told everyone to bring a blank onesie in any size or color. We provided fabric paints, pens and inks (with stamps) and everyone let their creative juices flow! People had a LOT of fun with this.

(A note if you'd like to use this idea - we did provide extra onesies for people who didn't bring one or who decided they wanted to do more than one. I would suggest having your extras be larger sizes, not newborn. Peyton will quickly outgrow many of her REALLY awesome clothes. I also tried to keep a list of who made which onesie for thank you note writing purposes, as well as for a keepsake!)

 My dad rigged up a "clothesline" for people to hang their finished onesies on to dry (and display).

Two of my favorites. CTS is the bus company that Steve drives for and, well, the other was made by my mom. ;)

 Some of the creative finished products!

These were some of my favorites as well. :) 

The top left one says "I'm acute baby" (made by Caryn at the request of my brother, who found it hilarious.)

The top two on the right were made by me ("Made in Oregon" and "Sweet P")

The one on the bottom left says "Peyton with all the colors of the wind" and was made by my cousin Alex who worked as Pocahontas at Disney World! I didn't notice until later that she wrote "Pocahontas loves you" on the butt. ;)

After removing tags and sorting clothes and blankets, etc., this was the pile of laundry I had to do. :) Looking at these baskets made me SO happy and so anxious to dress our little angel in these sweet outfits!

Thank you everyone for blessing us in such huge ways!

30 weeks

Week 30 has brought lots of new and not-so-exciting symptoms!

Peyton has been kicking my bladder a lot which not only results in frequent (and urgent!) bathroom trips, but I think her kicks are weakening my bladder because a couple of times now (thankfully while at home) I have sneezed and lost bladder control. ;) The first time it happened I seriously texted my cousin to tell her because I found it so funny.

I jumped into ANOTHER new bra size this week... I decided to buy nursing bras in the new size (38D - I started at a 36B) in the hopes that I will eventually settle into that size while nursing and can make good use of these bras. My sister told me, "Pregnancy sounds expensive!"

Peyton went through a growth spurt this week and I felt bigger by the end of the week.

Still dealing with acid reflux. I started taking an over-the-counter medicine to help with that and most of the time it works well.

My pregnant friends are dropping like flies! Only a few left now. :)

I slid into a bit of a pregnancy funk this week and felt like I needed a lot of encouragement and affirmation from Steve. I felt like I hit a "slow spot" or something and that a lot of days I was more uncomfortable than not and just didn't feel like being pregnant anymore. I tried to remind myself that this happened at my mid-20-week point too and that it will pass and it's getting closer and closer to the big day!

This week was also my baby shower. :) My mom threw it for me with the help of my sister and we had SO much fun. We did it "open house" style where people could just drop in and stay however long they wanted and this worked REALLY well. I also opened gifts as people arrived which meant that I didn't have to sit for an hour (or more) and this was an awesome idea. Instead of playing shower games we had people bring a blank onesie to decorate and we provided paint, ink and stamps, etc. for them to use for decorating the onesie. People were SO creative!
(I will add photos to this post because they can't possibly NOT be shared but I don't have them with me at the moment.)

29 weeks

My belly has continued to be itchy this week.

Most evenings my fingers and toes feel quite swollen, especially my toes. Several evenings I have soaked them in a bathtub or bucket of cold water and that feels soooo good.

I sleep in a "nest" every night with either my pregnancy pillow or a body pillow to hug and another pillow behind my back for support.

I'm still HOT! We had one day this week that was close to 90 degrees, which I realize is still quite pathetic, but we were at an outdoor birthday party and by the time we got home I was EXHAUSTED from the heat. Once I get overheated it takes me quite awhile to cool down. Steve's parents gave us a portable air conditioner for his birthday and we have been making great use of it, especially in the evenings. I am so thankful for that thing.

Continuing acid reflux this week...

My emotions were at an all-time crazy high this week. Steve and I went through a bit of a rough patch and there was a span of a couple of days where I felt like I was crying more than I was not. Every little thing would hurt my feelings or frustrate me or set me off (including something like not being able to fall asleep) and I would just dissolve into a puddle, gasping and sobbing. We were able to work through our rough patch and I began feeling MUCH better.

I am almost positive that Peyton is laying transverse or at just a tiny bit of an angle, based on where she kicks me the most. Her kicks are most often on my right side and I can often feel her feet under my ribs. I don't feel near as much movement on the left, though it is there, making me think that's where her head and arms are. She has started "stretching" in addition to just kicking and moving and there are times when I can feel sections of my uterus being pulled to one side (sometimes more sections than one at a time) or I can watch my stomach totally shift positions. It's incredibly weird. ;) One day this week I told Jordan, "Here, push right here." He put his fingers on my stomach and I pushed on them. The hard spot he was touching wouldn't budge and I'm pretty sure it was a little baby butt or heel, shoved up against my belly!

(In the midst of our difficult week we missed taking a 29 week photo.)

Some fun photos!

I thought it would be fun to add some "extra" photos of my pregnant friends and I, etc.

 This is my friend Aslan and I after our pedicures! She is 29 weeks and I am 25 weeks. Her little Sammy is due at the end of July! Aslan and I were both caregivers for Dorothy, though our families go "way back". Being pregnant together has been tons of fun.

Outie belly button!

One of my coworkers brought her 6-week old kitten Turtle to visit at work. People told me my belly looked HUGE in this picture. ;)

This is probably one of my all-time favorite photos. Apparently at Bible study there is a STRONG emphasis on being fruitful and multiplying! Our only non-pregnant friend, Heather, served as photographer. ;)

Ryn is 25 weeks, I am 29 weeks, Amanda is 27 weeks and Stacy is 37 weeks, scheduled to be induced two weeks from when this picture was taken! (I had apparently worn the wrong color that day since you can't really see my belly in front of the window.) As a little side note we are all having girls except for Stacy. :)

28 weeks

At the very beginning of week 28 we were nearly in a car accident (some guy left room for a truck to pull out of a parking lot but the truck apparently didn't deem it necessary to be able to SEE before he turned left across two lanes of traffic, nearly running into us head on). I was driving and had to SLAM on the brakes to avoid hitting the guy. Jordan yelled from the back seat, "HEY! You need to watch where you're going! There is a PREGNANT LADY in this car!!" The crazy adrenaline rush and sudden braking caused my stomach to tighten up and be very sore and uncomfortable for about a day and a half afterwards.

I've started making MUCH more frequent bathroom trips. No more of this two or three times a day at work business! I switched my water bottle from a jug with a straw (causing me to "sip" water all day but not DRINK enough) to a Nalgene bottle with an open top. This has really been helping and I can usually get my two liters down by evening (though I still have to try).

It's been a couple of weeks since I was able to comfortably put on a pair of socks and I can no longer cross my legs while sitting, unless I'm leaning back (like on a couch). Baby also does not like it when I cross my legs and enjoys sticking her foot under my right ribs (super comfortable).

This week I was much more tired and could feel my belly going through a bit of a growth spurt because it was extremely tight and itchy. I wore a support belt to work every day this week and that helped me be less exhausted by mid-morning. One problem I'm having at work is mid-back pain. I think it has to do with the setup of my desk but it has become quite uncomfortable. (I am literally counting down the days I have left at work.)

I continue to crave milk! I also eat a TON of cheese and have been eating ice cream (new favorite: Starbucks Caramel Mochiato) almost every day. The cheese is excellent in the mornings at giving me a little boost of protein. I've been trying to eat peanut butter (often on an English muffin), yogurt (often Greek) and cheese for breakfast almost every day. I notice a huge difference in the way I feel if I can get that protein on board first thing.

My most frustrating symptom this week has been acid reflux. There are days when it is quite painful and I am not a fan! Taking papaya enzymes has helped a little with this. Next on my list of things to try is an over-the-counter medicine.

I have been HOT this week. I overheat very easily and rarely wear a hoodie or sweater at work anymore. I prefer to sleep with the window open and often don't put covers on until the wee hours of the morning.

Baby is EXTREMELY active now! She moves a lot all the time and sometimes even keeps me awake for long periods at night.

(Note for myself: my nipples have started leaking this week.)