23 weeks

23 weeks pregnant - 2/25/12

Ahh time off :) It has been so nice to have the whole week off from work and not to have any travel plans, something that rarely happens. Jack and I have stayed home a lot this week and it's been nice (though not as relaxing as you might think - have I mentioned that having a 2 year old is exhausting?)

We are eagerly awaiting Jack's big boy bed, due to arrive on Monday. He knows the "mailman" is bringing it and he's seen his trucks quilt that goes on top of it. Quite a hefty price tag to get the child set up in big boy surroundings! First there was the bed and bedding (thanks Grammy and Big Papa - we REALLY appreciate the housewarming gift as it allowed me to get what I wanted!), then the twin mattress, the toddler rails (two bc the bed won't be flat against a wall), and mattress pads (two bc we are entering potty training land). Jacob doesn't want to hear this, but we also need at least another set of twin sheets and then I want eventually to get a new dresser and some pictures for the wall to go with the transportation theme. Pictures to come!

So if Jack is getting new bedding, of course baby needs some too. I have a vision for her nursery that revolves around the rug we currently have in our dining room (think orange, red, green, and aqua flowers) and a picture Jacob took of an orange flower from our time in Hawaii that we blew up on canvas. 95% of girls' bedding seems to be pink, but I've fallen in love with a lime/mimosa floral set (aren't those just awesome color names?) and I'm itching to go ahead and get it. We also plan to paint Jacob's own dresser from when he was a baby to match whatever we go with. No pictures until I actually buy something, but I think this little one is going to have the sweetest nursery!

23 weeks

Belly Comparisons

23 weeks pregnant with Jack

23 weeks pregnant with baby girl

Week Twenty-Three Stats:

How I know I'm pregnant: really tired this week even though I've gotten good rest; stronger kicks; noticeable contractions - first noticed these on Valentine's day and assume they are Braxton Hicks and harmless but will definitely mention them at next appointment - they aren't painful, but are uncomfortable and sometimes I'll have multiple ones over like an hour spread - anyone else had these this early on?

Diet: Cooked 3 dinners again: falafel repeat, scallops with orange scented quinoa (thanks Food Network), and grilled pimento cheese (that I made); also made granola and cinnamon rolls from scratch; add to that a delicious $13 dinner at American Sector (including tip!) and Indian food on Friday night

My healthy pregnancy intentions for last week (how I did):

1) Exercise: walk, go to gym 1x, go to prenatal yoga (check, check, check)

2) One sweet a day goal! (yes for half the days, no for the other half)

3) Relish the week off with Jack and get some good R&R. (yes! I've read probably a hundred books, done many puzzles, built a lego farm complete with animal pasture, farmhouse, and mushroom field, and crawled in and out of the dollhouse many times)

4) Potty train Jack! (That has nothing to do with pregnancy but I see it being VERY helpful when the baby arrives.) (We're making progress - I'm a little nervous how things will go once he is back in school, but I'm happy with our progression as of day 4)

My healthy pregnancy intentions for this week:

1) Plan for healthy dinners, cooking at least 3x

2) Pack healthy morning snack and ignore unhealthy snacks at work

3) Exercise most days

Jack at 2 1/4 years

Up till his second birthday, I was writing in a journal every month to keep track of Jack's growth. Quarter years seem more doable, so here goes his 2 1/4 year update:

Jack's Lovable Quirks
- Jackisms: still says "nummy" for another; says "cordaboys" for curdoroys and "jeanuhs" for jeans

Jack in his "cordaboys"

- He has so much to say these days that a lot of times his thoughts come out in a hyperventilated-sounding rush. For example: "Gasp, gasp, Momma, gasp, we gonna go in daddy's car, gasp, and listen to Mickey?"
- In what could have been a very dramatic evening, we were able to convince Jack to throw away his moldy looking "old" green bop (pacifier) in exchange for a "new green bop" that we happened to have been given for the new baby. (There was a brief effort at just throwing away the old pacifier, but 1 hour of crying later, we ripped open the new package.) He now refers to it consistently as his "new green bop." Jacob only half jokingly calls him a bop addict.
- He loves to play "I Spy" which comes out "Play ispywithmylileye Mommy"
- He LOVES to listen to children's songs - daddy's car is "Mickey" songs and mommy's car is "Wheels on the Bus" - he will yell "UP!" if he isn't satisfied with the volume and lets you know when to skip songs. I'm more indulgent than Jake with him :) (i.e. we listen to tracks 1,4,5, and 6 most days).

Less Lovable Quirks
- He generally cries like I've just betrayed him to the core anytime I leave him somewhere, though he stops within a minute of me being gone.
- He loves the word "No!"
- Transitioning anywhere is a battle (upstairs to down, one room to another, leaving the house, etc.)

Growing Up
- I'm realizing as I write this that he really isn't hitting much lately, which was our first big 2 year old battle. (He would hit you when he got mad.)
- We are working on potty training. If we figure it out, that will be its own post, but he's definitely making some progress.
- He is sleeping in a big boy bed for the first time tonight!

Big Brother Jack
- He giggles whenever we talk about the baby "giving me a kick". He knows the baby can hear us, he talks to her, and he asks occasionally about holding her when she's born. The baby (as yet not officially named) is "Baby Co-wa" (Cora) to Jack.

Schedule
- Up at 6:30 most mornings, sometimes sleeps till 7
- Likes to come "snuggle" in our bed when he wakes up - he has a tendency to get up right after I get up, but I'm always up for snuggle time which usually means I get back in bed and then I end up running late.
- Breakfast is almost always oatmeal, usually with raisins (his favorite snack lately), strawberries, walnuts, and plain yogurt. We've started letting him have watered down OJ.
- We endure the getting dressed battle and then are off to school
- He cries about half the time we leave him, but always seems to be having a blast when I pick him up after lunch.
- We play a little after school (usually in the dollhouse - his favorite play spot) or run an errand, then read books, have our snuggle time, and then he naps for usually 3 hours!

Dollhouse play - a doctor having tea

- He wakes up between 4-5, so a little late, but then we play on the porch and usually go on a walk.

Porch time: "Hi mom"

Cruising in his fire truck

Then he plays downstairs with his trucks and fire trucks while we make dinner. More playing with one of us upstairs and then bath time with Daddy, more books and bed around 8:30.
- He seems to lie awake for a while before he falls asleep. If he wakes at night, Jacob goes in since Jack usually cries if I go in and then leave.

You are a precocious, persistent, stubborn, creative, smart, adorable, loving little boy - YEAH that you are ours!

22 weeks

22 weeks pregnant (2/18/12)

It's a girl! Momma's intuition + big brother's prediction proved right. We had our ultrasound on Thursday and "saw" (ultrasounds are hard for my spatially disadvantaged mind to process) a big, healthy girl. The tech and the perinatologist spent extra time examining her heart and saw no evidence of any heart defects. Our risk factors for having a second baby with a heart defect were small (3-5%) but obviously we were relieved to know that not only her heart, but all her parts are looking good!

If you've been following the blog, you may have noticed that I just skipped a week of pregnancy. Talk about a productive doctor's visit! Our original due date was June 30th which was an estimate since we chose not to have an early ultrasound. The doctor said the baby was measuring as a June 14th due date, so since the discrepancy was so large, he adjusted my due date to June 23rd, which still makes sense based on what we know about this baby's beginnings :)

We were already planing a Mardi Gras/housewarming party on Friday night, so we decided to share the sex at the party. I wrapped a few clues and let Jack open the present. The first thing he unwrapped was a little lego girl. He had once been looking for his lego "garbageman" (a role he assigned) and I held up a long eyelashed lego person and he looked at me disparagingly and said, "No, mommy, that's a girl." We'll work on his gender bias later, but it made for a good way to share the news, since, when he saw the lego person, he said "It's a girl" (or rather "gur-rul"). Also in the bag were a little newborn onesie and the framed ultrasound picture for Jack's room.


Jacob and I have begun name negotiations ;)

Week Twenty-Two Stats:

How I know I'm pregnant: this is meant to be an honest blog, so still constipated :) Continued CRAZY pregnancy dreams and I notice I get winded easily - I'm either less in shape than last pregnancy or I just notice the windedness bc we now have stairs and having a 2 yr old is a physical job

Diet: Cooked 3 dinners again: falafels, zucchini "crab" cakes, and homemade salsa tacos; struggled with the 1 sweet a day rule

My healthy pregnancy intentions for last week (how I did):

1) 20 week ultrasound!! (YES)

2) Go to the gym 1x and walk most other days. (YES)

3) Keep on top of my back exercises as I think this has helped keep the backache minimal. (YES)

4) Keep working on the one sweet a day goal despite the Mardi Gras temptations. (Um, no - I probably averaged 1.5 sweets, and maybe more, so need to try again next week)

My healthy pregnancy intentions for this week:

1) Exercise: walk, go to gym 1x, go to prenatal yoga

2) One sweet a day goal!

3) Relish the week off with Jack and get some good R&R.

4) Potty train Jack! (That has nothing to do with pregnancy but I see it being VERY helpful when the baby arrives.)

20 weeks

20 weeks pregnant (2/12/12)

This week was a much better one at the Landry household. That whole "the definition of insanity ...." clicked for me this week, so I took a different approach to Jack's naptime. More play time and attention before nap + a later start + a willingness to "lay down with me Momma" served me well most days and I just handled things better this week in general.

Time is a-passing! I'm officially on the second half of my pregnancy. I feel really good right now and am looking forward to starting a fun Mardi Gras season and the BIG excitement of this week which is our 20 week ultrasound on Thursday!

Jack became the first person to feel the baby kick this week, which was really sweet. He is totally into this baby and I'd say he "gets it" pretty well. He's always asking if the baby is "awake" and now that he got a kick he wants to feel for another one. Jacob also felt some kicks for the first time last night.

Week Twenty Stats:

How I know I'm pregnant: well if I'm being honest, constipation; there has been a definite increase in the strength of the kicks this week

Diet: I've been better about my sweets (though man I do love them) and I cooked 3 healthy dinners again, so pat on my back

My healthy pregnancy intentions for last week (how I did):

1) Midwife appointment on Tuesday (my BP was a little low, but otherwise everything was good - have gained 9.5 lbs. I continue to tell anyone who will listen that I think this baby is a girl so it's now even written in my chart "thinks its a girl" :) )

2) Start prenatal yoga on Thursday (yes!)

3) Eat no more than 1 dessert a day (yes, I normally eat two) (I really worked on this and nearly all days I ate either just one or one and a bite)

My healthy pregnancy intentions for this week:

1) 20 week ultrasound!! I am so excited to see this baby. We haven't had any ultrasounds so it will be our first glimpse of our baby. I'm also so excited to know the sex and get a little bit more of our future colored in. I'm also anxious to know that this baby is healthy. I know that most babies are born healthy and I pray that this baby is blessed with great health.

2) Go to the gym 1x and walk most other days.

3) Keep on top of my back exercises as I think this has helped keep the backache minimal.

4) Keep working on the one sweet a day goal despite the Mardi Gras temptations.

19 weeks

19 weeks pregnant (2/4/12)

This was not my best week. There were some definite bright spots, but overall I did not handle well the fact that Jack didn't nap 4 out of 5 days. The only day he went down was when Jacob was home to put him down. The other days, he called for me on and off the whole time he was in his room. Since he both climbed to sit on the rail of his crib and was doing headstands in his crib, we had to shift to the big boy bed...which he can get out of....which leads to multiple trips up and down the stairs for me. Hopefully next week will be better.

In other news, I've started thinking about the things I want to accomplish before the baby arrives, and so I thought I'd post a list and then see where I'm at at the start of March, April, May, and June (wow - still a ways to the due date, but we are in no rush!)

To-Do List Before Baby
1) Jack's Room: Buy big boy furniture and move Jack from nursery to big boy bed in his room
2) Nursery: Decorate nursery to welcome new baby (who I still think is a girl, so I'm imagining flower pictures, red and orange colors, and a colorful dresser)
3) Dining Room: Finish decorating - we need bar stools, at least one piece of furniture to sit on, and to hang pictures
4) Our bedroom: Find places for this pile and turn this corner into a nursing/reading/relaxing nook with a glider + ottoman

5) Porch: Clean off our porch and start using it - meaning buy some porch furniture
6) Backyard: Test our backyard for lead, remediate if need be, landscape, possibly put up a back fence, and make it a place that will be fun for Jack to play outside this summer
7) Baby Supplies: We only NEED new cloth diapers, upgraded changing table, a toilet bowl sprayer, a double stroller, and some summer newborn clothes since Jack was born in December. I'm sure we'll pick up other things for fun.

We'll see if any of this gets knocked out in the next month!

19 weeks pregnant with Baby # 2 (Thanks for the shirt Julie!)

19 weeks pregnant with Jack

Week Nineteen Stats:

How I know I'm pregnant: BAD backache that thankfully went away this weekend and stronger movements

Diet: There is a definite need to lay off the sweets! Otherwise, I've eaten lots of oatmeal, fruit, cheese, and bread - those are my staples in addition to whatever is for dinner.

My healthy pregnancy intentions for last week (how I did):

1) Go to the gym 1-2x. (1x - yep; other days went on long walks with Jack)

2) Take time throughout the day to do my pelvic tilts to try to stay on top of the backache. (most days, yes)

3) Plan out meals for the week that involve COOKING and healthy food. (I cooked 3 nights in a row - I was really proud of myself for this!)

My healthy pregnancy intentions for this week:

1) Midwife appointment on Tuesday

2) Start prenatal yoga on Thursday

3) Eat no more than 1 dessert a day (yes, I normally eat two)