19 weeks pregnant

Sporting fall duds for those "brisk" mornings

First off, I love this time of year.  A subtle change in temperature makes life in New Orleans really pleasant!  (Currently we are mid 60s - low 80s each day with some upper 50s/upper 70s popping in now and then.)  And then there are the holidays!

I love celebrating life with my children.  Anticipation of holidays is an easy way to do this.  This year we have been looking forward to five Halloween events.  First, a family night at Boo at the Zoo, tickets complimentary thanks to my writing for the New Orleans Moms Blog.  Then, the annual Fall Festival at our church, which is just a great afternoon of family fun, bounce houses, and a chili cook-off.  Those events were this past weekend.

Doesn't he look like the sweetest police officer ever?

"I-keem Cone"

4 1/2 Landrys

Next weekend, we have Halloween festivities at school on Friday.  The kids just get to wear a special hat, but it doesn't take much to make a child excited.  Cora and I are making pumpkin cookies for her class and I know Jack's class will be doing the hands-on grapes/noodles/etc. Halloween food experience.  Halloween night will be spent at Jack & Cora's friend Weeks' combined birthday party and trick or treating party.  Then we'll end the weekend with the Irish Channel Halloween Festival, complete with more bounce houses, costumes, and food.

In pregnancy news...

19 weeks with two sweeties

We are nearing the big gender reveal and I'm so excited!  This pregnancy as a BABY and CHILD has been hard for me to firmly grasp, so I can't wait to actually see the little baby at our 20 week ultrasound and then know if this is a Baby Girl Landry or a Baby Boy Landry.  I was so convinced at first that it is a girl but I'm less sure now.  I'm not sure if that's just an unwillingness to blindly trust intuition or if my intuition is changing.  TBD...

The nausea is almost entirely gone.  I have some moments still of regretting eating, but for the most part I'm feeling better about food.  My two current challenges: constantly feeling like I need a nap and assorted pains.

Falling asleep at 8:30 on a day I took a nap, staying in bed until 6:30 the next morning and then needing another nap that day = problem!  It's hard to get much done when you are sleeping most of the time your kids are sleeping.

And the assorted pains vary.  For the past few days it felt like my hip was out of joint and so I was hobbling around not due to pregnancy but due to hip/back pain on the right side.  I have other pains that come and go.  It just makes me feel kind of old!

More revealing 19 week shot

As for baby movements, this definitely continues to be its own UNIQUE pregnancy.  Once I felt movement in my other pregnancies, I remember being able to feel the baby at least some every day thereafter.  This time, I've been trying so hard to feel the baby since around 17 weeks.  This has left me thinking I'd feel a little kick but never being sure.  I'm finally to the point where I feel confident I've felt the baby move, but it's very occasional and not even every day.  I know this could be due to placenta placement, but it's another reason why I can't wait to see this baby on the ultrasound!!