Merry Christmas!

Christmas had some unexpected surprises in store for us. First, Tae and I both were sick. Tae with strep and the beginnings of pneumonia and I with a bacterial infection. Second, we ended up getting a fair amount of ice and snow which made traveling difficult. We ended up rescheduling one of our Christmas get togethers for this coming weekend.

We tried not to let these things damper our spirit of Christmas. We went to Shawnee on Christmas Eve to visit Aaron's mom, step-dad, and brothers. The picture above is Tae trying out her new skates! We had a great time visiting, eating, and of course, opening presents! On our way home that night, we picked up my little sister, Lyn, so she could stay the night at our house and not have to drive to my moms in the ice in the morning. Tae loves her "aunt assey" and had a great time having a sleepover.

Christmas morning, Tae slept in until 9am and was excited to see what she got for Christmas. She was very excited to look at all her stocking stuffers and open her presents. We got ready to go, warmed up the car, and headed over to my parent's house for brunch and more Christmas fun. The drive was a little icy and we saw a lot of people having problems driving. Thank the Lord that we made it safely. My mom and dad had made scrambled eggs, sausage, monkey bread, and smoked salmon with bagels and cream cheese. Everything was delicious!

Taelyn had fun opening her presents from Gramma and Papa and then we hung out until the rest of the family came and it was time to eat dinner. Dinner was super yummy! My mom made ham, twice baked potatoes, roasted vegetables, rolls, assorted relish trays, and cheesecake for dessert! After dinner we all got to open presents from one another. A fun time was had by all and I am glad we got to spend quality time with our family.

We look forward to celebrating Christmas with Aaron's aunt, uncle, grandpa, and dad on Saturday and hopefully we are all feeling better by then!

We had a great time celebrating Christmas and most importantly, the birth of Jesus. I am so thankful that God gave us the ultimate gift and am blessed to be able to celebrate Jesus' birthday with my family!

Bumpdate: 15 weeks!

Weight Gain/Loss: -5 lbs

Baby Size: A naval orange (4.0 in, 2.5 oz)
 

You probably can't feel it yet, but she's squirming a ton! She might even be hiccuping in there. She's making lots of progress: her joints and limbs can all move now!

Symptoms: Well this week has had a lot of non-pregnancy related symptoms because I came down with what I thought was a nasty cold and ended up being a bacterial infection. So, since before Christmas I have felt like crud : ( I think the sickness made me not realize any symptoms related to the pregnancy...although being sick when pregnant is doubly horrible!

Movement: Occasionally fluttering! Can't wait for Tae and Aaron to feel the jabs and pokes!

Gender: Can't wait to find out!

Maternity Clothes: I feel like I am at the odd stage of pregnancy, where I don't look very pregnant, but none of my clothes fit me and I look a little silly in maternity clothes.

Cravings: I have still been craving Panera, but this week it is their tomato soup or their french onion soup! Someone bring this sick girl some soup ; )

Sleep: Sleep has been horrible this week due to my illness. I haven't been able to breath out of my nose, so I've been sleeping breathing through my mouth, which is horrible. I've also been waking up all dry and super crusty (gross, I know). I'm hoping with my antibiotics, I will feel better soon!

Best Moment This Week: I want to say that the best moment this week was going to the Dr, but it Christmas was a lot of fun and thanks to my mom and dad, I got Dr. Sears' Pregnancy book (which I love)!

Taelyn: The other day I was laying down and our cat was laying on my tummy (which he has always done during my pregnancies) and Taelyn said, "Look mommy, Stanley is nesting the baby!" Oh man, I got a kick out of that....

Bumpdate: 14 weeks!

Weight Gain/Loss: -5 lbs

Baby Size: A lemon (3.4 in, 1.5 oz)
 

He's probably sucking his thumb and wiggling his toes in there! His kidneys are making urine, and his liver and spleen are doing their jobs, too. And he's growing lanugo, a thin, peach-fuzz-like hair, all over his body -- it will help him keep warm!

Symptoms: Heartburn is my worst enemy! The papaya enzymes seem to be working well, but it still stinks! The ligament stretching has been painful this week. A few times when I have gotten up too quickly, I have doubled over in pain.

Movement: I notice the most movement after I have eaten.

Gender: Can't wait to find out!

Maternity Clothes: Yup, yup, and yup. I'm hoping to use whatever Christmas money I get to buy some more maternity essentials.

Cravings: I've been craving fresh things, like big salads or sandwiches. I feel very addicted to Panera lately!

Sleep: Getting up to go to the bathroom more often. I have also been having a problem with my arm falling asleep while I am sleepy!

Best Moment This Week: We have entered the second trimester! I am so glad to have more energy...now I feel I can get more stuff done.

Taelyn: We were at the store the other day and we were near the baby section. When she saw all the baby things, she got really excited and said "when the baby gets here we can buy all this stuff for her!" She is going to be a great big sister!

Bumpdate- 13 weeks!

Weight Gain/Loss: -5 lbs

Baby Size: A peach (2.9 in, .81 oz)

Can you believe she's forming vocal cords and teeth?! And even though she's still teeny, she already has fingerprints. Her intestines are moving from the umbilical cord to their more permanent place, in her tummy.

Symptoms: I have energy this week. Haven't had a nap all week! I have been having the weirdest dreams. From my niece falling and breaking her nose to me being in labor for 8 hours and them sending me home because I wasn't progressing. The pregnancy congestion has continued to be persistent. I'm constantly sneezing and stuffed up. I remember this from being pregnant with Tae.

Movement: I feel the occasional flutter!

Gender: About 7 more weeks and we will find out. Aaron told me that he was feeling boy this time. He was right about Tae being a girl the first time around!

Maternity Clothes: You can definitely see a baby bump and some of my tshirts are getting tight around my belly. I'm sure maternity clothes will be out in full force before I know it.

Cravings: Nothing too big this week. I have been craving sour things, like mustard & Italian dressing. I had this same craving when I was pregnant with Taelyn. I remember eating a sandwich with the mustard bottle in one hand squeezing mustard on every bite. Thinking about it is actually making my mouth water : )

Sleep: Good, besides the weird dreams!

Best Moment This Week: This is the last week in my first trimester. We are almost 1/3 of the way done. I definitely want this pregnancy to go slowly since this will be our last baby.

Taelyn: I told Taelyn that I was feeling a little sleepy the other day and she said, "Don't worry mommy, I take care of you all the time". She sure is a sweetie!

"SUV Express"



Hot Chocolate!

Tickets!

I saw this idea on Pinterest and I was so excited to do it with Tae. The night before we did this, we watched The Polar Express together (this is what this idea is based off of). While Aaron gave Tae her bath and got her ready for bed, I got all the supplies ready. I found these tickets online and printed them out. They say "minivan express", but they worked for our SUV! I then made hot chocolate for all three of us and of course, some homemade popcorn. I then cut the tickets apart and placed three of them in her bed. We got her all ready for bed like we do on any normal day. We even

read her bedtime books (in our room). Once it was time for her to get into bed, we walked into her room and she saw the tickets!

She was so excited when she saw the tickets even though she wasn't sure what it meant. She kept asking who put the tickets there! We told her they were tickets to the "SUV Express" and that we were going to take a surprise trip. We put on her robe and slippers and headed downstairs.

We gave her her hot chocolate and got ready to go. She was super excited and kept saying, "I'm so excited...I can't wait!" We piled into the car with our hot chocolate and popcorn and headed out.

We drove to Yukon and went through the lighted park. She had her window rolled down the whole time! We ate our popcorn, drank our hot chocolate, and marveled at all the beautiful lights. After seeing all the lights, we headed back home and she went right to bed. I think this will be a new tradition for our family!

Bumpdate-12 Weeks!

Weight Gain/Loss: -3 lbs

Baby Size: A plum (2.1 in, .49 oz)
 

Most of her critical systems are fully formed! She's about to enter the growth and maturation stage, in which her organs and tissues will grow and develop rapidly. She's now developing her reflexes -- if you poke her body, she'll likely move. She's opening and closing her fingers and curling her toes, too. Her brain is developing fast!

Symptoms: I feel tiredness has returned this week, but I think it may just be stress related. I've been having the occasional headache...not fun, especially since I'm not taking any pain relievers of any kind.

Movement: I feel the occasional flutter!

Gender: Scheduled our ultrasound for the end of January!

Maternity Clothes: I have about two pairs of pants that I can still wear buttoned up....all the others need the Bella Band. I've been wearing some maternity pants/jeans which are way comfortable.

Cravings: Cottage Cheese! I've been eating this every day and it is so good!

Sleep: Still going good!

Best Moment This Week: Setting up our ultrasound appointment. I am getting really excited to find out what we are having!

Taelyn: The Baby Countdown has been working great! She loves getting the little treat every day and I think it helps her understand the time frame.

Family Pictures and Baby Countdown!

My sister Jennifer took some family photos of us this past weekend. It was a beautiful start to December with temperatures in the 70's! I am so pleased with how they turned out! She is definitely talented : )

Look at my handsome husband...don't we make a cute couple!?! I'm in love!

Whew...isn't she beautiful!?! She is my most precious gift and I love her dearly!

Another think I worked on this week is a "Baby Countdown" for Taelyn. She has been continually asking if the baby is ready yet. I've told her the baby wont be here until summer time, but time concept for a four year old isn't very good. My sister Leslie gave me this great idea to make a countdown jar. Here is what I used:

Unreal candy is one of our new favorite brands of candy. It is a non-GMO candy with none of the icky HFCS, hydrogenated oils, or artificial colors that we try to avoid. I think the candy even tastes better than the conventional brands!

And this is the finished project:

 

I counted out the candies all the way up to my "due date". Every night after dinner she gets to eat one candy. She will get to see the candies decreasing and know it is getting closer to the baby arriving!