25 Weeks

Last update for the month of August!  25 weeks in, approximately 15 more to go! 

Overall, some of the tougher symptoms from last week have lessened.  As you may remember, for a few weeks I've had occasional cramping (some actually bring me to my knees; and at one point, I sat on the kitchen floor waiting for them to pass), but this week was much easier in that regard.  For obvious reasons, the skin around my belly itches and I sometimes scratch without thinking---which I've heard is a no-no!  Trying my best to curb this habit so as not to damage my skin.

David is still lively.  It's almost as if this kid is moving furniture in there.  He's pretty active regardless, but I've learned he's more restless at night if I've consumed a lot of hot sauce during the day.  As much as I love spicy food, cut backs have been made because otherwise this mama has no chance of catching some z's.

Although I mentioned I wasn't planning on hiring a birth doula, that option is back on the table!  Anna found a few doulas nearby that offer military discount to families who are separated by deployment, which I'm so thankful for!  So far I've been playing a bit of phone tag with one so we'll see where this opportunity leads.  Without having Trevor physically in the delivery room, I've been a bit concerned about having enough support during labor.

21 August 2017:  Delivery Fears + Receiving Words of Encouragement
This week I spoke with my cousin Erin who just delivered her second baby, a little girl!  She graciously share her labor and delivery stories of both babies and I feel empowered by her words of encouragement.  Not going to lie, I've been a bit fearful---which, I know, is pretty standard for most first-time moms.  I'm concerned somehow my body is different... in a bad way, and it won't handle the delivery well.  Women still die during childbirth, people!  If I'm honest with myself, I'm concerned my body isn't capable of handling the burden of birth.  Since admitting this I've begun to pray and relinquish this fear to the Lord.  It'll be a work in progress for me as I begin to trust that God will assist in calming my fears, relaxing my body, and providing the strength necessary to give birth to little David.

24 August 2017:  Filming David's Kicks
On the left side of the screen you can see a few of his kicks right away.  Then as I touch my belly, you can see my fingertips lift as he kicks my hand.  Trevor loves this video!

26 August 2017:  Furniture & Clothes Shopping for Baby!
A few fun purchases have been made!  Mom and I picked up a tall dresser from Ikea to house all of baby's clothes, mittens and hats, and other little odds and ends.  Carter's held a great sale this week so I picked up a few things for this little guy.  With knowing we'd like to have more kids, I stuck with gender-neutral color schemes wherever possible.  Although I couldn't help buying a few outfits geared towards boys, I bought some mittens, onesies and pants that can easily be passed down to a little girl.  Depending on when the shipment arrives I'll try to take some pictures for next week's post.  It'll be like a little haul of everything I brought with me from Colorado and all the goodies I got from Carter's this week.

Skyping with my love in Target.

Life.

Week 25 Photos

Sassy McNasty.

Week 25 Updates

1.  Size of the baby?  Baby at 25 weeks is as big as a head of cauliflower, measuring 13.6 inches in length and weighing nearly 1.5 pounds.

2.  What's developing this week?

3.  Current weight? 139.  +1lb from last week, +22lbs pre-pregnancy.

4.  Movement? :)  Sometimes his kicks feel like something's dropping in there, if that makes sense.  It's like a hard thud.

5.  Sleep?  Some nights are better than others but most nights I don't sleep well; lots of tossing and turning.

6.  Symptoms?

•  Belly button hurts and looks odd.  At 14 years old, I had an emergency appendectomy and the surgeon made three incisions into my abdomen, one being through my belly button.  It's been hurting lately as if the scar is stretching and my belly button looks odd to me.
• Break-outs on my belly and thighs from using different oils and lotions.  If you've noticed a few in the last few pictures, now you know why!
• Itchy belly.
• A bit of burning in chest; indigestion. 

Notable Mentions:

• Beginning this week, I began occasionally drinking red raspberry leaf tea.  Red raspberry leaf tea has been rumored to assist in decreasing the duration of labor.
• Additionally, I sometimes apply organic olive oil to my perineum area in effort to moisturize the area to help it stretch, without tearing, during labor.

7.  Cravings and Aversions? Nope.

8.  Best moment this week?  Catching up with friends.

9.  Prayer requests?

• Prayers for a better night's sleep would be appreciated!  :)

10.  What are you looking forward to for next week?  OBGYN appointment on Tuesday, the 29th.  Also looking forward to receiving the box of Carter's clothes!

24 Weeks

We've reached another milestone!  This week is the week of viability so if baby is born prematurely, he has a 50-70% chance of surviving outside of the womb.  In just two weeks, the likelihood of survival will increase to over 90%!  We're thankful our little babe is healthy, developing well and has reached this milestone at 24 weeks.

You guys, pregnancy brain is no joke!  I have straight-up forgot things within a few minutes which is a little embarrassing and frustrating.  I try to jot down as much as I can throughout the week so I remember what to write come Sunday, but it's a struggle.  I can't believe I forgot to include some of these things!

Back when I was 22-weeks along, I had an appointment with Dr. Friedman to go over the 20-week anatomy scan, remember?  Well, I forgot to mention that during the appointment Dr. Friedman struggled to get a reading of David's heart rate because David wouldn't stop kicking the Doppler wand!  Anytime he placed the device on my belly David would kick it!  I wish I had filmed the appointment--it was actually pretty funny!  The baby was spot-on kicking the Doppler wand and we could audibly hear each kick as it was coming through the speaker.   The doctor moved the wand around my belly in an attempt to get away from the baby's kicks but it wasn't long before David found it again and began kicking.

In fact, anytime I rest my hand on my belly he will inevitably kick it.  If you recall, the first few kicks I ever felt were after placing a bowl of cereal on my belly while laying in bed.  Trevor and I like to joke about what this means and which one of us he's more like.  As a kid, Trevor recalls he didn't like being hugged or touched, although his father is very affectionate with him.  However I'm kind of the same way as an adult, haha.  Whenever I sit with Trevor on the couch I'll ask him to scoot over because I like to spread out and have enough room to myself.  Although development-wise, it's very likely he's simply responding to stimuli; we like to contemplate his personality and envision who this little boy is.

Needless to say, this week has been filled with thoughts of who this little boy will be.  Between Trevor and I, I try to imagine who he'll resemble more.  Or will he look like one of our parents instead of us?  Maybe he'll have my brother's green eyes or Trevor's parents' blonde hair.  Most often I picture a little brown-haired, brown-eyed boy and this image alone makes my heart melt.  I can't wait to see him!

Over the years we've discussed how we want to raise our children, focusing especially on what to do if we ever had a boy.  Which in reality, this means we'll be raising a man.  It's important to us that our boy is chivalrous and takes care of people.  We want to teach him to open doors for others (especially his mom and sister/s--if he ever has any), to be kind always and courageous when he has to be, and to have integrity.  I pray he comes to know the Lord through experiencing our relationship with God as he watches us naturally put our trust in Him.


17 August 2017:  Happy 3-Year Anniversary, Jesus!

On Thursday, the anniversary of my baptism, I listened to an old song that I haven't heard in yeeeeeears!  I actually teared up while singing it and thinking of my baby boy.  I think I'll make something for the baby's nursery that includes lyrics from this song.

Lee Ann Womack - I Hope You Dance

Speaking of something else I forgot to mention, last week I had some terrible cramping.  It was pretty scary, actually.  I had on a pair of shorts underneath a dress and, although it wasn't uncomfortable at first, the waistband starting digging into my belly.  Any pressure on my belly seems to cause baby to press down on a nerve.  One night this week I attempted to sleep with the wedge pillow under my belly for extra support but in true David-fashion, he wouldn't stop kicking it.  He was actually kicking the pillow, guys.  After adjusting a bit I figured he would move around and stop but he was relentless and the cramps returned.  So again, the pressure on my belly caused him to move in such a way that he landed on a nerve.  To be honest, I'm not sure what the heck is going on but this baby is already running the roost, so to speak.  If he starts kicking the pillow now I just don't use it.  Those cramps are no joke and I want to avoid them at all costs.

Trevor's Updates:  Dreams of Homecoming + Song Dedication

This week Trevor mentioned he spent some time thinking of what his homecoming will be like.  He says he's envisioned seeing me from afar holding the baby, running up to me and embracing me before taking the baby into his arms for the first time.

He heard this song by The Hollies and said it reminded him of me.  :)  He said he loves it because it's about two people meeting and falling in love---and the girl chooses to miss her bus to stay chatting with him in the rain.  The lyrics "By August she was mine" is pretty fitting too.

Annnnd now it's on repeat in my house.

The Hollies - Bus Stop

Someday my name and hers are going to be the same.

Week-In-Review Pictures

My walking buddy!

The home Trevor was raised in.

I'm so flippin' exciteddddddd for bathtime!

Another weekend, another bead show.

My selections.  Mom's going to make me something.

Am I weird for loving these?  Haha.  The bigger one reminds me of Dia de Los Muertos and the other is a just a skull I thought was cool...

Shopping for folks back home.

How it goes.

Week 24 Photos

Cliché Goodness.

Week 24 Updates

 1.  Size of the baby?  Baby is 11.8 inches long and weighs about 1.3 pounds, about the size of a cantaloupe!

2.  What's developing this week?

3.  Current weight? 138.  +1lb from last week.  +21lbs pre-pregnancy.

4.  Movement?  Errday!  And night.  

5.  Sleep?  Sleep is sucky.  I toss and turn a lot and have trouble finding a position that keeps us both happy.  And to top it off, last night David kicked for hours!  Around 2am I walked around the house (the idea being to "rock him") just trying to get him to fall asleep, which worked.  Then, around 6am, my right pirformis flared up once more.

6.  Symptoms? 

• Dry eyes.
• Burping a lot.  Like, a lot.
• Occasional heartburn.
• Right piriformis flare ups.  Foam rolling helps a lot but it's super painful.  I set up an appointment with my primary doctor on base to begin the process of physical therapy.
• First came bigger boobs and now nipples are following suit.
• Belly button is flattening out.
• One really bad charley horse early in the week.
• Occasional cramping when pressure is applied to belly.

7.  Cravings and Aversions?  Craving pancakes but I'm being a good girl... for now.   If anyone offered to meet me at IHOP I would not say no, just sayin'.

8.  Best moment this week?  Mom feeling the baby kick 4 times in a row.  A notable mention is a stranger came up and congratulated me on my pregnancy.  

9.  Prayer requests?

• Please pray for Trevor's hand.  He injured it and it's not really treatable.  Just a lot of inflammation but it's painful.
• Please pray that my body continues to grow and stretch well to meet the needs of the baby.  It almost feels as though there's no room... 

Praise Report

Thank you for your continued prayer!  Champie seems to be doing well two-weeks out from antibiotics.  It's such a relief to see him behaving like his old self again, thank God!

10.  What are you looking forward to for next week?  I went to Target last week and bought a ton of cleaning supplies.  My plan is to wipe down every square inch of this place and I'm stoked!  #EarlyNesting or just a #CleanFreak?

23 Weeks

At 23 weeks, this little guy is still active as ever!  In my December birth group, a few ladies have implemented "kick counting" over concern for baby's wellness.  According to the articles they've posted, baby should kick at least 10 times in two hours.  So, just for the heck of it, I decided to measure David's kicks and it took him all of 48 seconds to kick 10 times.  This kid won't quit!  But for now, I'm grateful for the activity--gives mama peace of mind!  Once this week he kicked me just as I was falling asleep.  Thanks Davey!

The new sensation this week was feeling kicks towards my back; however, it's not as frequent as the belly kicks.  And unfortunately, he will still occasionally press down on a nerve and it's painful.  Hopefully as he grows he won't sit so slow on my pelvis.  A mama can dream, right?  Additionally, the intermittent heartburn has turned into GERD.  Most nights I just deal with it but I took two Tums once this week otherwise sleep was not happening.

Much like the week prior, I spent a few days cleaning and organizing with energy to spare while others were consumed with the need to rest.  My pregnant body is vastly different than my pre-pregnancy self and I have to admit, some days I push the limits of what this new, temporary body can handle.  Athletically speaking, the 1st trimester took a lot out of me and so now that I'm feeling good I often overdo it.  I need to learn balance but it feels so good to exercise that I don't want to stop earlier than I'm used to.

So I was thiiiiiiis close 👌 to accomplishing goal #5, which was to take a calligraphy class.  After some consideration, I opted to save money and just order some supplies and watch calligraphy tutorials on Youtube instead.  We'll see how well this turns out because I don't have great handwriting.  Granted, I write fast and don't put effort into my penmanship so maybe I'll have a chance to do well if I actually try.  We'll see!

So far, the Mama Natural Birth Class is going well!  I've learned a lot and have implemented many of her suggestions.  The biggest thing she's insisting on (which I will not be following), is to hire a doula.  Tricare won't cover the cost of one and Los Angeles doulas run about $1200.  I just can't bring myself to commit to that but I have plans to have support with me for the delivery and of course, God will provide.

If you're interested, I'll update you guys with my overall impression of the course once I complete it!

Update on Trevor:  First Time Dad Book ✔️ + Long-Distance Communication
A friend of ours gifted Trevor First Time Dad to read while overseas and he recently finished it.  For those of you who are interested in books for first-time dads, Trevor would not recommend this one.  He says the author's ideas aren't anything most guys haven't heard and/or common sense.  What we've found helpful is having Trevor take the online birth course along with me.  So far he's enjoyed the practical advice and he's attaining ways of assisting me during labor.  Although he'll be supporting me from afar, we're working towards him sharing words of encouragement and suggesting various positions, etc, if he feels called to do so.

Communication looks different for us for now.  It's a blessing we get to connect most days!  A couple of weeks ago, the internet for the entire base shut down and we couldn't communicate for a few days.  He usually calls me during his workouts at the gym and after work while he's hanging out in the dayroom.  Receiving a call or text from him brightens my day, even if it's just to say, "Hi baby, thinking of you."  It's moments like these that instill gratefulness in me.  Being separated is so very hard on both of us, and yet this experience is strengthening our relationship.  It's renewing, in a way.  It's a powerful thing.

Hydrate!

😘

On the elliptical.

Skyping with the belly.  And maybe me too.

Trevor sent home this little Dr. Seuss book and a video of him reading it.  It's meant to be read to the baby while in utero and it's such a sweet gift for our boy.

Random Photos From The Week

Couch shopping with Katie!

Picking up some more toffe-ettes from See's!  It's the only thing he's requesting from home.
Other than McChickens...

Trader Joes, I'll take them all.

No wonder the Jeep wouldn't start...

Thanks for the dress, Cristina!

Week 23 Photos

Week 23 Updates

 1.  Size of the baby?  Baby measures 11.4 inches from head to foot and weighs 1.1 pounds, as big as a grapefruit!  Yep, baby’s almost a foot long, and is finally able to be weighed in pounds!

2.  What's developing this week?

3.  Current weight? 137.  +1lb from last week; +20lbs pre-pregnancy.

4.  Movement?  Just a little. ;)

5.  Sleep?  It's been rough, guys.  I wasn't much of a back-sleeper pre-pregnancy but now it's the only position my body seems to want.  While asleep, I'll roll onto my back and have trouble breathing within minutes.  Sleeping on my right side causes pain in my right piriformis, and sleeping on my left side isn't comfortable...  It sucks.  I did invest in a wedge pillow but so far it's nothing special.

6.  Symptoms?

• GERD symptoms earlier in the week but less often towards the end.
• Felt tightness underneath my belly button; skin stretching.
• A little bit of breast tenderness has returned.
• Occasional fatigue. 
• After walking a lot, my booty is throbbing!  It's been this way since getting pregnant and has yet to diminish.

7.  Cravings and Aversions?  Craving chocolate chip pancakes from IHOP.  Now that I've mentioned it, are you too?  :P

image source: ihop.com

8.  Best moment this week?  Going shopping with my mom and picking up a few things for the baby.

9.  Prayer requests?

• Once again, prayer for my family would be much appreciated!  It's been a rough night.
• Prayer for Champ's UTI.  So far, so good but we'll see what happens this week as the second round of antibiotics fizzle out.

10.  What are you looking forward to for next week?  3-Year anniversary of my baptism on 17 August!  It's my little anniversary with God.  Back in Fort Collins, I would drive up to Horsetooth and find a secluded area to worship alone but now that I'm home I think I'll venture somewhere that overlooks the ocean.

22 Weeks ///\\ 5 Months!

We can now say we're 5-months pregnant!  It's crazy to think I'm only 8 weeks away from being 30 weeks along.  Time is flying, for sure.  And it's been just about a month since Trevor left for his deployment.

As other military couples know, being separated for long stretches of time thrusts your relationship into change.  For us, it's not a bad change, but more so our interactions are morphing to adapt to our new situation.  But I have to say, there's a learning curve to taking on a long-distance relationship when we've developed our marriage over the course of 12-years spent together.

At times it seems as if the old adage is true, "You can't teach an old dog new tricks" with regards to a marriage; to a relationship.  We both have our set-in-stone tenancies that require a major overhaul. This is where God steps in.  By His grace, He's showing me who I am with every interaction I have with my husband.  And it's not always a pretty sight.  Every morning I pray that the habits I exhibit which do not reflect the Lord's love would die and that He would rebuild me into becoming the wife that Trevor needs and wants, not the wife that I think I ought to be.

There's beauty in the rebirth of ourselves when we trust in God's abilities to do so.  It's messy, uncomfortable and albeit painful during the process of shifting reliance from our own understanding to God's will; thus allowing Him to work in our hearts and reveal to us who He created us to be.  To provide space for Him to show us how to treat our spouse, our children, our parents and our neighbors.

During the six months Trevor spent away for training, God walked me through this idea a bit.  It felt like, at the time, that we were just getting started and submitting to God's will for my marriage was coming soon.  And the journey was not going to be easy.  I knew He had a plan for developing me into a better wife and preparing me for motherhood.  Who I'm going to be as a mother involves who I am as a wife.  After all, our children will experience how Trevor and I treat each other and our interactions as parents, partners, lovers and friends.  And as far as we're concerned, our children deserve to witness a loving, kind, patient and everlasting love between us; true love (1 Corinthians 13:4-7).

To summarize, God is doing away with the counterfeit, and replacing it with Himself so the relationships I have with others are real, meaningful and bare good fruit.  If you're in a similar place in life, I encourage you to simply pray.  Ask for forgiveness where you've been hurtful towards others, ask Him into your heart to heal your brokenness then declare that you're relying on Him to develop your relationships into Godly partnerships.  And, because God calls us to first seek His kingdom before all else, pray about this daily and be prepared that your whole world will shift.  It's amazing!

1 August 2017:  Trevor's 31st Birthday + Follow-Up Appointment with Dr. Friedman
Although we knew it would happen, it's a bummer to miss out on special days together.  I love celebrating birthdays!  Well, I should say, I love celebrating the people I love.  So hence why I sent him a pretty-darn-cool-birthday/12-year-anniversary care package last week, but it still doesn't feel like enough.  For those familiar with the book The Five Love Languages, one of my primary love languages is quality time so naturally, I wish I could give him my time in person.

Mom and I visited with Dr. Friedman to go over the baby's 20-week anatomy scan a few weeks back.  However, for whatever reason, he wasn't able to pull-up the notes from my appointment but he said he had reviewed the scan and did not recall any issues or abnormalities.  And really, if he had discovered anything he would have contacted me sooner.  Even so, I'll follow-up with him again at our next appointment which will be towards the end of the month.  We're supposed to discuss my "birth plan" at that appointment as well, which I don't really have one yet.  Additionally, he encouraged me to pick a pediatrician so that's also something I need to start researching.

2 August 2017:  Champ's Multiple Vet Visits + Round Ligament Pain
This past week was a little tough for me, emotionally and otherwise.  My cat Champ has some sort of urinary issue again (common for male cats), and although he's only had this problem one other time in his 9 years, he's not recovering as fast this time around.  I prayed for healing again last night and thankfully, for the first time in two and a half weeks, he didn't run in out of the litter box all night.  It's hard on me to know that he's uncomfortable and in pain.

And then I spent a few days resting because my belly hurt so badly!  This occurrence interfered with a few plans I made during the week to go hiking with some friends and walking with others.  My belly is stretching, I get it.  And some days the fatigue is pretty rough as well.

3 August 2017:  Happy 12 Years Together, My Love!  + FB Name Announcement

+ 

 

5 August 2017:  Enrollment in Online Natural Birth Course
Ever heard of Genevieve Holland aka Mama Natural on Youtube?  I signed myself up for her online birth course and so far I've learned a lot!  It's not that I'm against medical intervention (because, truth be told, I've always planned on getting an epidural), I'm simply interested in learning as many ways to cope with the pain of childbirth as I can.  With Trevor being away, I want to soak up as much knowledge going into this delivery as possible.  My intention is to learn practical strategies for managing pain so that I can best lead myself through the process, and help instruct my mom how to support me.

Week 22 Photos

Week 22 Updates

1.  Size of the baby?  Average baby size at 22 weeks is 10.9 inches long (from the crown of the head to the heel of the foot) and 15.2 ounces, about the size of a coconut!

2.  What's developing this week?

3.  Current weight? 136.  Up one pound from last week.

4.  Movement?  He loves to kick and move around until I start to film him.  Somehow he knows mama's got the camera out!  I was able to get a video of one kick this week, but I swear he kicks all the time until the camera is recording him.  A few weeks ago I started singing to him and in between songs he moves a lot!  He's either enjoying the singing or trying to kick me so I won't start up again. 😂

Top of screen/Left side of belly.

5.  Sleep?  It's been tough getting a good night's sleep because of Champie's issues.  :(  But aside from that, I've had some piriformis muscle pain on my right side that wakes me up occasionally.  And my belly tends to hurt for a few minutes after I roll over from one side to the other.

6.  Symptoms?

• Lower belly pain/round ligament pain is awful.
• Occasional nerve pain in pelvis.
• Feeling down/sad.  Mostly at night.
• Some days I have a lot of energy then others I'm exhausted!  The belly pain and exhaustion usually occur simultaneously.
• Foot cramps from hell.  Need to increase my magnesium in-take.
• Noticing my sense of smell is starting to intensify. 
• Belly is starting to feel heavier.  It's harder to sit-up from a laying-down position.

7.  Cravings and Aversions?  I got nothin'.  Eating meat again like I did pre-pregnancy.

8.  Best moment this week?  Trevie receiving his birthday box and Ashley feeling the baby kick, twice!

Notable Mentions:  

• Later in the week I began playing classical music for the baby.  
• Every night before bed I flip through Trevor's voice-recorded storybook so the baby can hear his daddy's voice up close.

9.  Prayer requests?

• Please pray that God would continue to soothe Champ's pain and that he would recover soon.  Please also pray that this won't ever be an issue for him again as I've switched him onto a urinary tract health diet.
• That my body would adapt and stretch well as the baby grows.

10.  What are you looking forward to for next week?  Not a whole lot is planned for this week but I'm working on those goals of mine and taking the online course.