Sweet Lily Hope

Just wanted to share these sweet photos Nathan & I had the pleasure of taking of our very good friends new baby girl, Lillian Hope. Isn't she absolutely precious? Congratulations Jamie & Andee! We are so, so happy for you both!

25 week {Easter} 'Bumpdate'

25 Weeks (actually I'm 26 weeks now)

Weight: I bought a new scale... womp womp.. Was convinced mine wasn't working because the Doctor's always says I way weigh much more than my at home one. Now both at home say the same, so I am definitely just sticking with that. up 2 pounds since my last appointment so I think that's 18 total and right on track. 
Symptoms: I have been getting sooo full so fast lately. It's really more towards the end of the day around dinner and I can never have a "real" dinner. I maybe eat 1/4 the amount that I used to. The problem is, I'm hungry! But I feel as though nothing else will fit in there and I get SO uncomfortable if I over eat even the slightest.. although this has been happening for about 3 weeks. I think (TMI) this has a lot to do with being constipated and prune juice isn't cutting it any pregnant ladies/mamas have any advice??

Clothes: I've been trying to wear dresses lately but I still feel uncomfortable if my bump isn't defined enough because I am unsure how it looks..

Sleep: I have been wanting to sleep more! Hip pain has been getting worse and by the morning, neither side is comfy to lie on. But I am still tired and sleeping really well which I am thankful for.    Cravings/Aversions: Glazed doughnut holes (which I finally allowed myself to get) Chocolate, Watermelon, and iced coffee. A while back a friend of mine would always make me an iced coffee drink and I got super addicted. I have been craving it recently so I will brew some decaff, leave it in the fridge and just have some when I feel like it. If you're interested.. It's 3/4 cup brewed coffee, 1/4 cup coffee mate coconut creamer (although I never use this much) and 1/4-1/2 of chocolate milk. I just buy the lite Hershey's syrup and mix it with whatever milk I have then stir in coffee and creamer. Seriously, it is the BEST summer iced coffee ever. 
Baby- Sweet girl is good. Always bouncing around letting me know she's happy :)    Movement: Still moving in the same patterns.. she is super active some days and not as active others. I love the days that she seems to be awake a lot and tumbling around. She will move my whole tummy but every time I try to get it on video she stops of course. She has been shying away when anyone puts their hand on my belly lately to feel her move too.    How I am feeling: I'm definitely slowing down. Really enjoying the times I get to sleep later/longer. I even took a 10 minute nap the other day which resulted in me feeling worse than before the nap but it just proves I was tired enough to fall asleep in the first place. Loving all the movement and acrobats this little girls does in my tummy all day and I can't wait to see her cute little face!

How Daddy's feeling: "I feel ready to meet the baby!"
Other Stuff: Some really good friends of ours just had a baby and it makes me want to see our little girl even more! We started a journal for her and we both try to write in it every day. Usually what Nathan writes will make me cry and I just love how much he loves her already. 

Check out my other Pregnancy related posts!   Becoming Parents 24 Week 'Bumpdate' 22 & 23 Week 'Bumpdate' 21 Week 'Bumpdate' 19 & 20 Week 'Bumpdate' 17 & 18 Week 'Bumpdate' 16 Week 'Bumpdate'  14 & 15 Week 'Bumpdate'  13 Week 'Bumpdate' 0-12 Weeks 'Bumpdate' Pregnancy Announcement   If you want to see more of the bump, let's be friends on Instagram!

Our gender reveal party

I'll just start by saying we had such a great time at our gender reveal party. We love having people over & for the first time in months I finally felt good enough to plan a party! Even more so, I actually enjoyed planning it since I was feeling much better! Pregnancy is weird like that.. Makes you never wanna do things you used to love. . Like go shopping. I was having major withdraws but didn't care because I didn't want to move from my spot on the couch ;)

I loved searching online for the perfect candies & pink and blue decor to put around. The cotton candy laffy taffys were a huge hit because they were so darn tasty.  We found our adorable invites & banners here. How cute are they? We were looking for something unique and it was pretty hard to find things I hadn't seen used before. 

For the banners I strung our ultrasound pictures and the 'Buck or Doe' banners up on some hemp string and mini clothes pins I found at Hobby lobby.

I borrowed a sweet friends chalkboards and went to town decorating them with old wives tales, boy or girl guesses, & a game we came up with for people to guess her name. 

We wrote the letters of the name (we had both boy and girl names on the board) and then marked next to it how many of each letter was in the name.

My favorite part were the poppers. This actually took a lot of planning and preparation. Thank goodness for my amazing husband and mom!! 

About 3 weeks before the party we decided we for sure wanted to use poppers as the reveal. We went back and forth on a couple ideas of just having one and playing a musical chairs sort of game but we really wanted to give one to everyone to share in the special moment. Finally I found these after a ton of google searches. We of course had to cover them up and decorate them (which I will show you in another post!) and fill with confetti. I had seen this done before but always with the cardboard ones which seemed difficult to decorate & open without ruining because they come pre-filled. 

When it came time we headed to the backyard and handed everyone a popper. Nathan gave brief instructions on how it would work. We then we counted down from 3 and then pink flew everywhere. It was so fun! Of course Nathan & I already knew so it was so fun to watch other people's reactions. A lot more people thought we were having a boy so my favorite was watching the video later and seeing everyone's expressions. The party was so much fun and I am so glad we did it! Below are all the pictures & things we did to make the party "ours." :)

24 Weeks 'Bumpdate'

Weight: Oh who knows anymore.
Symptoms: I cry. at a lot of things. Been having more hip pain from sleeping too long on my sides to the point where it's sore when I am up and moving around. So thankful I haven't had any more leg cramps... this week. Last night we were in the car and I sneezed.. horrible round ligament pain. Constipation still even with my added glasses of gross prune juice. I think that little line on my belly is starting to appear.. (the Linea Nigra line). Extreme memory loss ha! I have total pregnancy brain about everything! Nathan will be like, babe.. we just talked about this 10 minutes ago.. did you forget? Yup, I did. Also, I am definitely slowing down. I long for bed earlier again & crave naps during the day even though I can't have them...

Clothes: I wear the same clothes every week already and now that we are officially in 'Summer' here in AZ, I've lost all of my cold weather clothing! Loving my maternity shirt pictured above that my sweet hubby got me. So comfy and lots of room. 

Sleep: Sleep is still the same.. Hip pain and going to the restroom 4x a night. But other than that, I am still sleeping well. Our bed is pretty high off the ground and I told Nathan he will need to adjust it soon because I don't think I'll be able to get in and out of it much longer.   Cravings/Aversions: Banana bread still! So I made another loaf.. last one did NOT turn out how I was hoping but this one was oh so delicious. I also have been loving fruit & pasta.. give me all the carbs. Love me some rocky road ice cream lately and also I have really been craving those little glazed doughnut holes.. but I have resisted. for now. 
Baby- Sweet girl is good. Always bouncing around letting me know she's happy :)    Movement: Moving lots. Some days a lot more than others .. we're still in that stage.. so it's usually every other day that she's going crazy. Yesterday she was moving a lot but not in big moves but then today, she went crazy while Daddy had his hand on my tummy. She rolled while his hand was there and he quickly jerked it away saying it was the weirdest yet coolest thing ever. She definitely has days where she is more active than others which I know is normal and part of her "routine." I find myself pushing on her if I really want to get her moving so I can "check" on her :)    How I am feeling: I am doing pretty good :)  I noticed these last couple weeks, whenever I see/hold a baby.. I long to be holding my little girl. I have been pretty emotional lately just thinking about what she'll look like and what her little personality will be like. I can't wait to meet her and snuggle her and give her a million kisses! Also, I can't believe I am already SIX months pregnant! I cherish this time so, so much & as badly as I want to meet her, I know I will miss this time and being able to have the special bond of her moving in my tummy and me being her protection from the outside world! I'm looking forward to having bi-weekly appointments to hear baby's heart beat!

How Daddy's feeling: "Daddy is starting to feel like a daddy. Seeing everyone as a daughter or son. And looking forward to that moment I can look my little girl in the eyes and tell her I love her."
Other Stuff: We registered! I was SO exhausted when we were done. I also had a semi-meltdown in the store and snapped at Nathan (poor guy!) I was so tired and overwhelmed with all the "stuff" there is! I know about babies because of my nieces and the fact that I was a nanny for close to 10 years but when we were there, it just hit me.. what is all this stuff, what does my baby need, am I going to be able to figure this out?! I text my sister when we were done & said, ok listen, can't I just give her the boob and call it a day?! Luckily she responded with Yes, that's all she really needs. My sister loves me & knows when I am having pregnancy freak out. But it's still true, all she needs is a mommy and daddy who love her very much and will figure it out as they go. The Lord will lead us to be the best parents we can be for our little girl and that in and of itself is enough reassurance for me!!
Check out my other Pregnancy related posts!   Becoming Parents 22 & 23 Week 'Bumpdate' 21 Week 'Bumpdate' 19 & 20 Week 'Bumpdate' 17 & 18 Week 'Bumpdate' 16 Week 'Bumpdate'  14 & 15 Week 'Bumpdate'  13 Week 'Bumpdate' 0-12 Weeks 'Bumpdate' Pregnancy Announcement   If you want to see more of the bump, let's be friends on Instagram!  

22 & 23 week 'Bumpdate'

 

 

 Remember that one time I was like.. Oh, I'll do a bumpdate every week.. ya.. sorry about that..I even skipped out on the Chalkboard pic this week *gasp* 

I think I have decided to test a new outfit out too because there is just no way I am getting into a long sleeved shirt and black pants this summer..

    Weight: According to what I indicated last week.. My scale lies. I straight up cried at the doctors this week because I have been so careful.. even stressed myself out with how much I was eating & I still gained another 7 pounds. I just sat there in disbelief. So I just don't care anymore. I will get baby girl what she needs and I can't worry beyond that. I'm up 17 pounds since the start so overall, it really isn't all that bad.   Symptoms: Hello pregnancy hormones. I have had quite a few meltdowns the past couple weeks over anything and everything. My poor husband.. I have also just now started to experience leg cramps.. so I thought I had experienced them earlier but when you wake up at 6 am to a charlie horse in your calf.. um ouch!! This happened twice in a row.. one morning it was one leg and and the very next day it was the other. They are still sore to walk on! Constipation.. so sorry TMI.. but it's become really bad.. and painful as far as cramping goes.. I woke up one night in horrible pain in my back as well as my stomach & finally realized it was indeed constipation.

Clothes: I am loving my Old Navy Maternity dress & the adorable maxi skirt I'm wearing above ^^ My mom got me that at Kohls and I LOVE it..who knew they made maternity specific maxi skirts?

Sleep: Sleep for the most part is still good! If I didn't get up a minimum of 4 times to use the restroom.. It would be awesome!    Cravings/Aversions: I've been eating strawberries & bananas every single day. I also really love the organic soft pretzels from Sprouts as well. I had been craving banana bread ever since a friend of mine had brought some over weeks ago. I just now finally had ripe enough bananas and made my own. Yum!

Baby- Baby girl is good! Heart rate at the doctors this week was 160. She is sooo active too! She is almost a foot long and weighs more than a pound! I can't believe how big she is getting.
Movement: Our sweet girl is so active. She has definitely gotten into a routine for the most part. She moves a lot during the morning when I first begin working until about noon. She also moves sometimes during the evening if we're hanging out on the couch as well. Last night her movements were so big we could feel her rolling around in there. We also saw her kick my belly the other day which was really neat! I love how Nathan's face lights up every time she gives us a big kick. :)    How I am feeling: Doing good! Starting to slow down just a little. I realized I cannot have big meals ever! I will get SO full so fast and feel terrible if I eat too much. I am also beginning to feel a little more tired in the afternoon time but it's nothing like before. I am still just really enjoying this stage! I love feeling her move all day long & getting her room ready. My Dr. reminded me that next month is our last monthly visit and then we will see her every 2 weeks and that's just crazy to me. I can't wait to meet our little girl but I really love being pregnant so I am hoping time slows down just a little ;) I've been feeling a tad bit overwhelmed with all the things I need to get done and not all baby related but just stuff we need to finish before she comes.

How Daddy's feeling: "Feeling her move is one of the coolest things ever! I'm ready to do this daddy thing!"
Other Stuff: I still cannot stop shopping for her. . I had some Kohl's cash and ended up spending it all on new outfits for her last weekend. My mom has also gone absolutely crazy with clothes & it is so fun to go through all of them. We have picked out fabric for sheets that my mom is sewing for us and we have the room painted! My husband seriously did such an awesome job! (You can see a sneak peak up top) I cannot wait to share her nursery with you when we are finished! 
Check out my other Pregnancy related posts!   Becoming Parents 21 Week 'Bumpdate' 19 & 20 Week 'Bumpdate' 17 & 18 Week 'Bumpdate' 16 Week 'Bumpdate'  14 & 15 Week 'Bumpdate'  13 Week 'Bumpdate' 0-12 Weeks 'Bumpdate' Pregnancy Announcement   If you want to see more of the bump, let's be friends on Instagram!