Bumpdate: 31 weeks

How far along: 31 weeks

Total Weight Gain: 29 lbs

Size of Baby: asparagus (I feel like asparagus seems pretty small, so I dug a little deeper and it says 16”. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a 16” asparagus?!)

Maternity Clothes?: Yeeeep

Sleep: Decent

Food Cravings: All the terrible, sweet things.

Food Aversions: Anything I have to cook myself. :/

Gender: Little lady – officially confirmed at our ultrasound last week

Symptoms: Oh, the usual. Heartburn, round ligament pains, more pain in my ribs. Not the most fun, but all worth it.

Milestones: All five senses are fully developed.

Movement: TONS and TONS of movement. It’s my favorite thing. I will miss this part.

Best moment this week: Seeing our girl on the ultrasound. Baby sprinkle thrown by my sweet friends.

Looking forward to: This week being over. It’s a crazy one for sure – observation at school, report cards due, school event Thursday. Saturday is the Halloween walk downtown though and I’m pretty excited about that. I love holidays.

Extra Notes: I finally did some purging/rearranging of stuff and we should be able to move Alden’s stuff over to his new room (that he shares with Leland now) soon…when we have time. Then I can do something with the nursery. I don’t get too crazy with decorating – a color scheme and a few decorative things. Not exactly Pinterest-worthy, but I’m excited to see it all together.

Bumpdate: 30 weeks

How far along: 30 weeks

Total Weight Gain: 28 lbs (that’s down 2 lbs from last week…weird)

Size of Baby: length of a zucchini

Maternity Clothes?: Yes siree!

Sleep: My quality of sleep is pretty good, but now I’m waking up to use the bathroom at like 3:30 and can’t get back to sleep until it’s just about time to get up for the day, so I’m not getting the quantity I probably need.

Food Cravings: All the sweets, but I’m really focusing on not having much.

Food Aversions: Nothing really.

Gender: Well, we’re pretty sure it’s a girl, but we should get some confirmation this week when I go in for a follow-up ultrasound (since they didn’t get great pictures of the heart last time).

Symptoms: Ligament pains, heartburn

Milestones: Our babe is ¾ baked!

Movement: So much movement! It’s my favorite thing. This weekend, Dave and I were sitting on opposite sides of the room and he could see my belly move.

Best moment this week:  A great weekend celebrating Alden’s third birthday and visiting with family.

Looking forward to: My “sprinkle” this weekend. Can’t wait to celebrate Wee 3 with some amazing family and friends.

Extra Notes: I am getting the itch to order a personalized stocking. The boys each have one, and the website that I got theirs from still has the same ones this year, so I want to order hers in case she’s here before Christmas (and because who knows if they will have the same one next year). But that means we’d better pick a name.

I have done literally nothing with the nursery other than move some of Alden’s things out. But it still has all of his clothes, and the toddler bed needs to be made into a crib again (that’s Dave’s deal though). I’m thinking maybe in November (possibly as late as Thanksgiving break) I’ll have some time to make it girly. October is jam packed though – all good things, but BUSY!

3 years

Alden Walker,

Today, you are three years old. Three. Years. Old. I can't even believe it. In some ways, it feels like you've always been with us, and I just can't remember life without you in it. In other ways, it has gone so fast and I feel like you were my wee little babe not very long ago.

Alden, you keep us on our toes. You argue everything, even when you intend to agree with us (like, you say you don't want something even though you do...it has to be your idea) . You are stubborn just like your mom and dad, and you want to do everything by yourself.

You are always on the move - jumping, running, climbing, exploring. You are curious and you have no fear, which can be a dangerous combination. I can't believe we haven't visited the emergency room more than we have. Other than that, you also love cars, trucks, planes, trains, and really anything that "goes." You also love to collect rocks wherever you find them.

As much as you love to move, you also love to snuggle. Every day, you cuddle up with me on the couch or ask to lay in bed with Daddy and me and just bundle up under the covers, chatting. You give the very best hugs of anyone I have ever hugged. You always have, ever since you were teeny. You wrap your arms around and hug so tight - like you really mean it. It's one of my favorite things.

You are quite the comedian, always making us laugh. And you know you're funny. Sometimes you and I sit together and you just giggle and giggle, which is contagious and makes me giggle too. The other night, you got the giggles in bed and you spread them to Leland; the two of you laughed and laughed for an hour about literally nothing. I couldn't even be mad that you weren't sleeping because it was so stinking cute. You also make silly faces or come up with your own little jokes and I can't help but crack up.

You weigh 33 lbs and measure about 37 inches tall. You wear mostly 3T clothes, though some are a bit big on you.

You are such a picky eater lately. You just want to eat snacks, and even though we don't allow you to snack all day, you still refuse half of your dinner most nights. You could live on fruit, pretzels, and cheerios (and treats) if we would let you.

We are working on potty training. You pretty much have the peeing part down, but you refuse to poop in the toilet, so you usually ask for a diaper. You hate socks. You fight me every day when it's time to put them on and you almost always take them off in the car on the way to daycare.

Favorite things these days are: any kind of vehicle (but you especially love construction vehicles), flashlights, collecting rocks, telling us no, playing outside, climbing everything that looks climbable, chasing the cat, and making people laugh. You also absolutely adore your big brother. You two argue and fight (a lot), but there is so much love there too,and you really are best buds. You have an unmistakably strong bond that I hope continues throughout your lives.

Alden, you are not an easy kiddo these days, but no matter how much you make us crazy, you bring us so much joy. I can't imagine our family without you and I can't wait to see you become a big brother in just a few weeks. Sweet boy, we adore you more than words could ever express. May you always know how much you are loved and cherished.

I love you to the moon and back.

Love, Mom

Bumpdate: 29 weeks

How far along: 29 weeks

Total Weight Gain: 30 lbs

Size of Baby: Acorn squash

Maternity Clothes?: Yep

Sleep: It’s been good, but it never feels like enough.

Food Cravings: Junk. Gimme all the sugar.

Food Aversions: Nothing really.

Gender: Girl!

Symptoms: Rib pain still. My doctor says it’s normal and gets worse with each pregnancy. Probably a good thing this is my last one?

Movement: Lots and lots, and it’s even visible from the outside. I got a quick video of it this week.

Best moment this week: Hearing Wee 3’s heartbeat at our appointment, for sure! Also going on Leland’s field trip to the pumpkin patch.

Looking forward to: My follow-up ultrasound next Wednesday. They will recheck her heart just to be sure all is well, and maybe we’ll get extra confirmation that she is, indeed, a girl. Also Alden's birthday! He requested a train cake and I have a pretty cute idea in mind. Hopefully it works out like I'm picturing.

Extra Notes:  At my OB appt a few days ago, my doctor suggested it might be a good idea to retake my glucose test just to be sure. I told her I would honestly rather just pretend I have gestational diabetes than take that test again. 1. I can’t stand that nasty orange drink. 2. It costs me like $50 every time they do bloodwork. 3. While GD isn’t amazing, it’s not that bad. It was pretty easy to manage with Alden, so I’m not afraid of it now. So I am eating my usual foods, but trying to make sure I have lots of protein, and I’m testing my sugar quite a bit to see if I need to adjust my food more. 

Bumpdate: 28 weeks

How far along: 28 weeks

Total Weight Gain: pushing 30 lbs…after I ate breakfast so maybe not quite 30, but definitely close

Size of Baby: Eggplant

Maternity Clothes?: Fo sho!

Sleep: It’s been really good lately. And the boys are sleeping better at night so that helps. They love their bunk beds!

Food Cravings: All the junk. But some healthy stuff too. I love my yogurt with granola and veggies with hummus.

Food Aversions: No big aversions, but I find that I’m not excited about the “main dish” these days as much as the sides.

Gender: Little Miss

Symptoms: Still major pain right under my bottom right rib. I’m thinking it’s just things growing and stretching, but I wonder if maybe I popped a rib or something because it’s only on the right side and it hurts so often. Not all the time, but for looooong periods of time. I have an appointment this Friday so I’ll ask about it then.

Milestones: Hello, third trimester!!!

Movement: Lots of movement. Starting to see it a bit from the outside when she does big movements, but mostly I feel jabs here and there and some that feel more like muscle spasms.

Best moment this week: Visiting Magi, Fischer, and Otto (and Eric). We had so much fun this weekend!

Looking forward to: Going on a field trip with Leland’s class this week, OB appt on Friday, and all the fun October has in store for us.

Extra Notes: Hmmmm…nothing extra noteworthy that I can think of.