28 and 29 Weeks

   

I think my New Years Resolution needs to be focused on being a better blogger. Oops. I have the pictures, just not the blog entries! With the craziness that is visiting both of our families for Christmas, I actually forgot to take an actual picture for 29 weeks The picture above is from the annual Ugly Christmas Sweater Party with our friends in Michigan. I guess it's better than nothing!

Pregnancy Highlights:

How Far Along: 28, then 29 weeks

Size of baby: At 28 weeks, he was about 2 1/4 pounds like a Chinese cabbage! He was approximately 14.8 inches from head to heel. At 29 weeks, he is 2 1/2 pounds like a butternut squash! He is just a little over 15 inches and growing!

 Total Weight Gain/Loss: My scale still has me at 18 pounds. I feel better about this. Not great, but certainly better! I know that this is the time where the pounds really start to come on as the baby grows and grows. Yay for a growing baby! 

 Maternity Clothes: All maternity pants, but a combination of maternity and normal shirts.

Gender: Boy!

Movement: He moves a lot! He gets a little crazy in the morning and the evening and after I eat. 

Sleep: I can fall asleep very easily but am having trouble with waking up for an hour or so in the middle of the night. This has not been so fun. 

What I miss: Sleeping through the night, but I know I need to get used to my new normal! :)

Cravings: Vernors Ginger Ale! This is a Michigan based soda, but thankfully they sell it here!

Symptoms: Nothing that I can think of at the moment!

Best Moment this week: Right before Christmas, I was given the most precious gift for our baby boy. A sweet friend at my school who is a fabulous quilter made the baby a play quilt! I really need to get a picture of it to put on here. It is full of bright colors and the most fun squares that she chose. It is large and soft and will be the perfect thing for the baby to lie on while he is playing on the floor. When she gave it to me, I cried. This has not been an easy year for me at work. I actually have a fabulous and pretty easy class, but there have been some other things that have been hard. Getting this quilt was just the most precious reminder that there are people there who love and care about me and the baby. I know that in my heart, but it was so amazing to get such a tangible reminder. It is so fun to look at and think about what a special thing it will be for the baby! 

26 and 27 Weeks

I have been crazy busy, so I'm combining these updates. I am 28 weeks TOMORROW, so I thought I'd better get on the ball and post!

 

Pregnancy Highlights: 

How Far Along: 26, then 27 weeks

Size of baby: At 26 weeks, he was about a pound and two-thirds and was the length of a hothouses cucumber (I actually know what those are, thank you, Food Network), which is about 14 inches. Now at 27 weeks, he is about 2 pounds and is about 14 1/2 inches long with his legs extended. All in all, they compare him to a head of cauliflower!

 Total Weight Gain/Loss: Why did I put this part on here? Sigh. I went to the doctor on Tuesday and I have gained a total of... 18 pounds. Whew, that is hard to type. I know I'm supposed to be gaining weight, though. I asked my doctor several times if I was gaining too much weight and he assured me that he feels as though I am right on track. Alright, pity party OVER.

 Maternity Clothes: All maternity pants, but a combination of maternity and normal shirts. Gender: Boy!

Movement: He moves all the time. It's my favorite thing! I looooove that when I wake up in the middle of the night, I can always feel him rolling around in there.

Sleep: I'm still sleeping great!

What I miss: Cookie dough. I'm in the midst of all my holiday baking planning and I feel sad that I can't indulge in my favorite holiday treat (the dough).

Cravings: Food in general. That's not really anything new, though!

Symptoms: This isn't a symptom, but it's getting harder and harder to tie my shoes and put socks on. I don't do very well bending over, either. My big old belly keeps getting in the way! 

Best Moment this week: Ty and I went to Babies 'R Us on Sunday and looked at cribs and rockers. I love going in that store and thinking about how our house will be overrun with baby gear soon! We are also still working on the name and it's fun to talk over those things together. I just love the new level that this pregnancy is giving to our marriage! One sad moment was that our Bradley class met for the last time. We absolutely loved the sweet woman that taught our class and I am so thankful to have her as a resource during my pregnancy and upcoming labor. I need to write a post on the class soon! It was fantastic.

 

Thank you so much for all your sweet encouragement in many different forms about my discouragement last week. I am feeling a lot better-- thank you, Lord! I do think that a lot of it is hormones, but I also need to learn to be not so stinking sensitive! I'm working on it. :)

Christmas Cards

Last year was the first year I sent out photo Christmas cards. I really enjoyed the process of picking out a picture and finding the perfect card. I think there is something so special about getting a Christmas card with a picture on it. I love seeing how children have grown and how families have progressed throughout the year. Getting the mail is one of my favorite parts of the Christmas season simply because of Christmas cards! It always has been. I get so excited to go home at Christmas and go through my parent's basket of Christmas cards as well.

I have never used Shutterfly before, but after taking some time to browse the products that they offer, I feel like it would be hard to use another company! Everything is so quality and professional, and the process is easy for someone who gets frustrated with technology sometimes (me).

I love, love, love their photo holiday cards and I think that this one is my favorite. I hope they have it around next year, because I think it is a darling option for a family.

I also think that their Christmas invitations are just perfect. We are having our small group Christmas party on Sunday and the girls are doing a cookie swap. If it were a bigger event with just women (and I had more money), I would love to send out this invitation. Maybe next year!

I also think that it would be fun to make a family photo calendar next year. If I'd thought of it earlier, I would have done one the last few years. My aunt used to do one for our grandparents. Maybe that's a 2011 Christmas gift idea! I also love the calendar poster. If I were going back to work after the baby is born, it would be a fun way to have a calendar to see his sweet face everyday!

Shutterfly is obviously a great company that offers many different photo products. It's great to have Christmas cards be an easy part of the holiday season! Merry Christmas!