33 weeks

Summer time is approaching us and boy is life getting busy. I had Brandon quickly snap this picture (realizing that I hadn't yet taken a weekly picture) while we were stopping home quick from a luncheon and about to take off again for supper club. 

the nice weather is returning this week and I just want to soak.it.up! I really want to enjoy and savor these last weeks with just the three of us before we soon become FOUR! it's a busy time though. finishing up the nursery. planning Harper's 2nd birthday. planning for Angela's baby shower- which will be soon after our little is born. it's busy, busy with lots of prep on top of the part of actually preparing for baby to arrive! one thing I was most happy I did before Harper was born was make freezer meals ahead of time. honestly, best thing I did to prep for baby! so add that to my list of to-dos!

anddd back on the prepping for Harper's birthday... since her birthday is July 13th and my due days is July 15th, we've decided to celebrate and have her party the weekend before. the 9th! I'm actually praying that baby boy does not come early! some think I'm completely crazy for planning her party so close to baby being due and the fact that I'll be 39 weeks pregnant... but what else am I to do!? I can't not celebrate her second birthday!

How far along? 33 weeks + 3 days

Total weight gain: 34 pounds

Maternity clothes? for sure. my favorite thing to wear has been dresses and tanks + maxi skirts. these last weeks I am all about the comfort! I'm getting more and more limited on what clothes I can wear. and the fact that my hips have been spreading/widening so much earlier in pregnancy this time- even some of my sweat pants aren't comfortable!

Sleep: sleep is good. no problems falling asleep. but there's something about those two minute trips to the bathroom in the middle of the night (twice a night) where it feels like it takes an hours worth of sleep from me. even though I have no problem falling back to sleep. in other words... I would have no problem staying in bed all day! :)

Current symptoms: by afternoon/evening my body is just done for. completely exhausted. there was one day this week that was non stop with errands and running around. I could tell I was having some swelling. that evening weird symptoms were happening! if they didn't go away as quickly as they did, I would've been more concerned and definitely been calling my midwife. some blurry vision on one side. then later followed by some numb arm and lip. yikes! sounds scary when I type it. but it wasn't all at once, didn't last too long, and has not returned in any way. thankfully!

Movement: oh yes. I do feel like I feel more movement than I did when pregnant with Harper, but I don't feel like he's crazy active in there. 

Food cravings: sometimes it's difficult to determine what is a food craving vs. a food preference :) 

Labor signs? no. although I am definitely noticing more braxton hicks as of lately.

Looking forward to: baby shower is this weekend!!

Xoxo

-Brittney

Hawaii | Babymoon

it's taken a few days, but finally feeling like we're back to 'normal' life around here.

the last few days of adjusting to reality of being home and trying to get our internal clocks back on track has included lots of sleep, caffeine, grocery shopping, easy dinner meals (like grilled turkey + cheese sandwiches and mac + cheese and dinosaur chicken nuggets), sleep, caffeine, laundry, unpacking (which still is not 100% done!), and some more sleep and caffeine!

but it was all so so worth it to spend 8 days laying under that glorious Hawaiian sun! I'm especially missing it since we came back to a weekend of rain here in Washington... so ready for those summer-feeling days to return!

there's just something about vacationing with the hubby before a new baby arrives. we did it when I was pregnant with Harper too by taking a vacay to Cabo. relaxing while soaking up the sun does wonders to the mind and body. it's a refreshing feeling and makes it a bit easier in accepting the reality that life is about to get a w h o l e lot busier real soon!

the very first photo I took on our trip was of this chicken here while we were waiting for our rental car! if you've ever been to Kauai you'll know what I'm talking about... these guys are everywhere!! no joke. chickens running free around the entire island. roaming the place like they own it. but I guess they kinda do ;) 

cats too. not nearly as many cats as there are chickens, but the most friendly, stray cats all around. Brandon took a liking to them ;) 

with all these animals, we found ourselves over and over talking about how much Harper would just love them all!

and on that topic... we took this trip without Harper and it was my first time everrr being away from her over night! and for the first time away to be so far and for so long... it was so tough to leave! I contemplated many times of just packing her along with us on that airplane... but in the end as hard as it was to leave, being on a child-free vacation was just what Brandon and I needed!

our two biggest decisions to make each day were "are we going to the beach or the pool?" and "what are we going to have for dinner?"

each day we did a whole lotta nothing. and that's just how we liked it!

this was actually a double babymoon since we were on this trip with Tyler (Brandon's brother) and Angela. we were able to enjoy our babymoons together since their expecting baby boy in September!

we love vacationing together :) Brandon and Tyler can get a little bit of golf in and then Angela and I can do our girl thing at the pool/beach with the guys joining us after golf.

this sign was perfect! and completely accurate. if you're to look at the Kauai weather forecast, it says rain every.day. BUT we were on the south side of the island and that wasn't even close to being true with the sunshine and blue skies we had!

all I have to say here is... WHITE PINEAPPLE.
no other pineapple will ever compare! if you ever go, get yourself a local white pineapple!
you won't regret the $17 it costs you. promise. and yea... really... we spent $17 on this pineapple.

a quick stop to see a couple of gorgeous, powerful waterfalls on our way to the airport.
absolutely breathtaking.

PHOTO DUMP!!

we're on the homestretch to welcoming our sweet boy into this world, and this babymoon was perfect. we were able to leave feeling refreshed and are now ready to push through these next 8(ish) weeks!

Xoxo

-Brittney

31 + 32 weeks

Two weeks of catch up here! Since we left early Thursday morning for Hawaii, blogging was not on my to-do list :) which means a 31 week update wasn't gonna be happening. at least not on time. it's been all about relaxing and zero responsibility! 

So here we are at 32 weeks (!!!) all refreshed and this baby belly is at its largest.

How far along? 32 weeks

Total weight gain: ??? this I am totally unsure about right now! with the heat from Hawaii, different climate, long flights, and my diet being different from normal- I have so much swelling. because of it, it's impossible for me to truly know my weight gain until my body has had sometime to get back to normal and get rid of this excess fluid! we had the red eye flight back home Thursday night/Friday morning. because of it I didn't get up once during the six hour flight (sleeping was my main focus!). but I now really know why they say it's important to get up and walk during flights while pregnant. goodness are my feet and ankles ever s w o l l e n! 

Maternity clothes? yes. although the last 8 days have been mostly about living in my bathing suit, so not too many 'real' clothes have been worn. with the exception of comfy non-maternity dresses.

Stretch marks? still using Palmer's Cocoa Butter and this essential oil prenatal balm after showers. but I think I may have noticed a new stretch mark this week. hard to tell though if it's one that was already there from pregnancy the first time. whether it's new or not, it is what it is and there isn't much I can do about it :) of course I'd rather not have them, but they're worth it for my babies!

Sleep: sleeping pretty good. I've had more restless legs and leg cramps so that can make it tough being able to fall asleep. it's also getting MUCH harder to roll over in the night to change positions.

Best moment this week: well we're technically combining two packed weeks here, but how can I not say it was babymooning in Hawaii! so so nice to relax, sleep in, have zero responsibility, and soak up some much needed husband/wife time. along with my brother-in-law & sister-in-law who we vacationed with :) double babymoon since they're expecting their first little in September!

Worst moment this week: worst moment, but also so great at the same time. when we got back to town Friday morning and headed to Brandon's parents' to pick up Harper, the moment I saw her my emotions flooded and tears ran as it really hit me just how much I missed her over the last week. it was so hard to think I had spent so much time away from her and for the first couple of minutes I felt a little disconnected from her. soon after though, we were right back to normal and she was giving me the sweetest loves and talking to me all about her fun week at papa and nana's. thank you, Lord that I didn't have those emotions during our vacation- I would've been a wreck!
Miss anything? I certainly did miss being able to lay on my stomach while we were out at the beach and pool. I was in good company with Angela though and well if you're to see the backs of our legs, they're no more tan than when we left Washington last week ;)

Movement: all over the place!

Looking forward to: getting back to our normal this week. as fabulous as vacationing is (and it is so so good!), there's nothing like it to make you appreciate just how great real life is at home with my little family.

xoxo

-Brittney

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