Pregnancy Diary 3 || One Week Old

Henry was 1 week old 3 days ago, so I'm a little late in finally posting this!

It has been a very relaxing 1.5 weeks since he was born. I am so blessed to have such a great support system. Between an awesome husband holding down the fort, on top of still working, amazing friends blessing us with meals, and grandmas and papas willing to watch the 3 big boys I have been able to just stay in bed all day with Henry. I have always tried to do too much too soon after having a baby, and my body always pays for it. I'm sure all you mom's out there can relate to that! So, this 4th time around I was determined to make myself take it easy. I am feeling pretty well so far. My insides still ache and sleep doesn't come easy, but I am feeling great mentally. I just keep reminding myself that we've done this 3 times before, and we made it through. My body will heal. The sleep will come. My milk supply will be sufficient. Normal life will resume. But for now, we are doing lots of this...

Henry is doing great as well! Healthy as can be. Nursing all the time, as he should, and loves sleeping on mommy. Pretty much just all the newborn things. 

And to finish up this pregnancy diary, here is one last belly shot!

I can't wait share Henry's birth story with you all too! But for now, here is a sneak peak at Henry's newborn pictures:

One week PP with Sam.

One week PP with Charlie.

Pregnancy Diary 3 || Thirty Nine Weeks

I was 39 weeks yesterday, and I am feeling just great! Keeping busy, staying active and just waiting on baby to come. I always have mixed feelings about the end of a pregnancy.  I think since I am sick the first half of my pregnancy the amount of time I have to really enjoy it is just so short, and I'm just not fully ready for it to be over already. That being said I am beyond excited to meet this new little one, and he can come anytime he'd like!

Birth supplies are all organized and ready to go, and for the first time ever I actually have a pretty much completed nursery that I am so happy with! My mom and Dean were awesome to help paint it not once, but three times, because of a stupid mistake on my part. I have curtains hung up for the first time since we moved in 3.5 years ago, and pictures on the wall. Some day I may even take pictures and post them here!

Baby's head is nice and low, and he loves being on my right side!

This very well could be the last Pregnancy Diary 3 post I make! Will was 4 days late, Sam was 3 days late, and Charlie was 3 days early. So, if I follow my pattern baby will be born this Monday at 4 days early!

Here is the belly at 39 weeks!

(Can you see that ab separation in this one?)

39 weeks pregnant with Sam.
39 weeks pregnant with Charlie.

Pregnancy Diary 3 || Thirty Six Weeks

I cannot believe I am almost full term! I will be 37 weeks this Thursday, so after that baby can technically come anytime he wants. Although, I would prefer he takes his time. I've got too much I need to get done!

I am feeling pretty darn good, considering. The struggle getting out of bed in the morning is real though. Not because I am too tired, but because sitting up in bed after laying still for so long takes a lot of effort these days. And those first few steps are killer! The achy lower back, and baby settling onto your full bladder. Ugh! Thankfully once I am up and moving around I feel alright. I am still getting to the gym a few days a week, and fitting in a yoga class when I can. I've had to modify big time, but it still feels good to get in there to lift some weights and move my body. Even if it is moving rather slowly these days.

Baby is in a good position with his head definitely down. He moves all the time. I can always count on him waking up at just about 10pm, and I am counting on him being wide awake at 10pm once he is here.

I am so excited to share my maternity pictures soon! My cousin is newly into photography, and it worked out perfectly that she was in town a few weeks ago (she's living down in Virginia) to do a little photo shoot. In the past I've always just given one of my sister's my camera and said go for it, and they are great and I am so happy to have them, but it was fun having someone who really knew what she was doing take pictures. And they came out SO well! I will be sharing my favorites soon, but for now if you hadn't already you can check some out on her blog right here!

Here is the belly at 36 weeks!

36 weeks pregnant with Sam.
36 weeks pregnant with Charlie.

Pregnancy Diary 3 || Thirty Two Weeks

Again, I am a week late in posting this, so technically I will be 33 weeks tomorrow (although the pictures are from last week at 32)!

His head has definitely gotten lower, so am I feeling the extra discomfort from that. But I am feeling pretty well overall.

My cousin is going to be in town next week, and she is going to be taking my maternity pictures. I am so excited!

Other than that, nothing significant pregnancy related has happened. It really is all flying by way to fast!

I am totally bigger than I look in these pictures, I swear! 

32 weeks pregnant with Sam.
32 weeks pregnant with Charlie.

Pregnancy Diary 3 || Twenty Eight Weeks

Technically I am 29 weeks now, but to keep my posts all nice and even we'll say it's 28!

I really am feeling great! That's not to say I feel perfect, because at almost 7 months it's impossible to feel perfect or "normal". Baby boy is apparently having lots of fun inside me, and I'm definitely feeling bigger. With every baby it gets easier to accept the changes to my body. Not just the growing belly, but you know, the back fat and even thicker thighs. With every bag of chips I eat or bowl of ice cream, I like to hope it's not only going right to my love handles, but to contributing to my baby's love handles as well. Baby is about 15 inches long and 2.5lbs right now, according to my babycenter app, in case you were wondering.

I have such a long list of things to get done before the baby comes...paint and redecorate the nursery, reupholster the glider, make curtains, finish his baby blanket. I keep putting it all off thinking I have all this time left, but really it is flying by waaaaaaay to fast. Here's hoping I get my butt in gear soon!

Here's the belly at 28/29 weeks. Stretch marks and all!

 

28 weeks pregnant with Sam
28 weeks pregnant with Charlie

Pregnancy Diary 3 || Twenty Four Weeks

I am feeling SO much better than I was at 20 weeks! I got my hemoglobin levels back up, and I am feeling as back to normal as I can being almost 6 months pregnant. I've been able to get back to the gym, and it has been so good for me. Not only physically, but mentally as well.

The baby is moving more every day. Sam finally felt him move yesterday, and it was the cutest thing!

This is the biggest gap in age between my babies so far. Charlie will be three a month before the baby is born, and he seems to actually understand what is going on. It's so cute having him talking to my belly. Charlie is still nursing in the mornings (I say nursing, but it's really just comfort sucking since my milk is long gone), but mostly he just loves the comfort grab. Like, a lot. The kid is obsessed! I've started talking about how it's going to be the baby's "eat eat" when he's born, and that it's almost time to not eat eat anymore. I am so done with it! But he loves it so much it's hard to say no. One thing is for sure though, tandem nursing/nipple grabbing ain't happening over here!

I feel so much bigger in real life than that first picture, but here is the belly at 24 (almost 25) weeks!

24 weeks pregnant with Sam.
24 weeks pregnant with Charlie.

Pregnancy Diary 3 || Twenty Weeks

First off, thank you for all the congrats and well wishes on our happy news of a healthy baby BOY! Everything looked great on the ultrasound, and we're on track for a mid July baby. There were quite the range of emotions when the gender was revealed. Aside from daddy, we all had our fingers crossed for a girl. The week leading up to the ultrasound Will kept saying, "I REALLY want it to be a girl, but I just know it's going to be a boy." He was right! It was so sad how disappointed they were, the sweet things. We keep talking up how great another boy will be, so I'm sure they'll eventually be fine with it. I'd be lying if I didn't say I was a little bummed at first, but in no time at all I couldn't imagine him being anything else!

I am 20 weeks, and 3 days. I finally realized this week that I am anemic. I've never dealt with anemia before, so I think it took a little longer to realize it than it should have. I just thought it was the normal pregnancy exhaustion lingering longer than normal, but I was starting to feel worse. I looked up the symptoms and I had all of them! Crazy tired, lightheaded/dizzy, headaches, rapid heart rate and trouble breathing. I started taking some extra iron, and I'm hoping I'll be feeling normal soon!

I have always carried my babies low, and especially this early on before I'm huge this is how I feel I look pregnant:

Yep, I carry my babies in my crotch. Here is the actual 20 week bump:

20 weeks pregnant with Sam.
20 weeks pregnant with Charlie.

Pregnancy Diary 3 || Sixteen Weeks

Sixteen weeks has me feeling SO much better than twelve! I've been nausea free for a couple of weeks now. My appetite is still pretty small, but I'm adding new things every week. My energy level is very low, and I get dizzy and lightheaded, especially in the morning. It's a very slow start to our day around here. First breakfast for me around 8am with some cuddles and screen time on the couch. Breakfast again around 9am/9:30am. Tidy up the house. Get dressed, and start school around 10am/10:30am. It will be nice to get back to a fuller, more productive schedule, but for now I am enjoying the slow (but still crazy!) days with my boys home with me. By the time dinner time comes around I am thoroughly exhausted. 

Dinners rotate between hot dogs and mac & cheese, yogurt smoothies or fruit and toast. It's so hard to make myself make real dinners, when it all sounds disgusting to me still, but I think all the men in the house would appreciate something with more substance.

For the first time since November I actually went out somewhere yesterday other than my mom's or midwifes! It was nice to put on real clothes and a little make up and actually see other people. I made it through a quick run into Wegmans alive, even though it smelled like vomit, and Dean, the boys and I stopped and got some cupcakes. As anxious as I am to be able to get out of the house, part of me has been a little scared. I've passed out at a store before while pregnant, so of course I don't want that to happen again. Pushing myself to get out yesterday was a good ice breaker of sorts. 

I can't say for sure if I have felt the baby move yet. I guess I was around 17 weeks along when I felt Charlie move, so any day now! I just scheduled my ultrasound for February 29th, and we are all so anxious to find out the gender! I've officially gotten my hopes up for a girl, and it's kind of not good! So far with each of my boys I felt like it was a boy right from the beginning, but this time I just don't know! For a couple of reasons I am leaning more towards girl, but it could easily be another boy as well. That's not to say I will be upset if it's another healthy boy. Of course it will be awesome have four boys. It'll just mean stashing away my baby girl nursery ideas and sewing projects list, and dragging out those baby boy clothes covered in puppy dogs and dinosaurs yet again.

My belly is slowly growing. Pants are getting tighter, and my shirts keep riding up, but I'm not quite ready for any maternity stuff I have.  I'm definitely in the awkward stage right now, and already feel way bigger than I am. I'm throwing in my fourteen week picture too, since that was my first one, but here I am at 16 weeks with baby #4 (with a surprise guest appearance)!

15 weeks with Sam
16 weeks with Charlie (and yes, I am wearing the same shirt)

Pregnancy Diary 3 || Twelve Weeks

I was hesitating whether or not to do yet another pregnancy diary. I've been pretty great about neglecting this blog the past year, and life isn't exactly going to be slowing down anytime soon. I so love having Sam's and Charlie's pregnancies documented though. So much I would have forgotten without it. It's been nice to be able to look back and know kind of what to expect, since all my pregnancies have been so similar. So here we go again! I'm not sure if I'll be as on top of it this time around, but I'll do my best.

I never even did an official pregnancy announcement on here, so here it is. I'M PREGNANT! Due July 21st, 2016.

I've been just as sick as always. Medication helped some, and at 12 weeks I'm through the worst of it. Thank you Lord! I still have a ways to go before feeling good, but I'm grateful to be at this point.

I can't say enough how thankful I am to have gotten (and am still getting) so much help from my and Dean's family. They have been taking turns keeping the boys, and my mom and sisters have helped with getting groceries and doing some housework. I don't know how I would have made it through without their help!

My sweet boys have been coping so well having their life turned upside down for 7 weeks now. They are super excited for this baby though. Sam likes to yell, "HI BABY!" at my tummy, and they all want it to be a girl (don't we all!). I asked why they wanted a girl, and Sam says, "Because boys are too crazy!" He's got that right!

I don't know where to start with how amazing Dean has been. I can't think about it without wanting to cry. He gets the boys fed and dressed and off to where they need to be for that day. Some days it's bringing them to work with him and handling both at the same time. He keeps the house picked up and laundry going. He goes to the grocery store every few days to make sure there is food in the house that I feel like eating. Which at this point changes quite often. He has been extremely supportive and encouraging, and only makes fun of me a little while I cry all the time at anything. All the while working full time keeping his crazy business going. Saying I am so grateful for him doesn't even begin to explain it.

The roller coaster of emotions I've had so far has been overwhelming. I try very hard to stay positive and not to complain. I am able to get pregnant, and I got to hear my baby's strong heartbeat for the first time yesterday! Once the extreme morning sickness finally goes away for good I have wonderful, healthy pregnancies and quick, beautiful births, and I am hopeful this one will be no different. I am so blessed to have the help and support I do that allows me to be pretty much bed/couch ridden for a couple of months while my focus is 100% on keeping myself and the baby alive. It's something that is hard to understand without going through it, but none of it is enjoyable. (Besides of course the fact that the reason I'm feeling like this is because I'm making a baby.) Especially since you feel like complete crap the whole time. My desire to be able to care for my family to my fullest potential is so strong. I can't wait until I can get up early with my kids again and make us a nourishing breakfast. To teach them and see them learn something new every day. To be able to leave the house to see friends or get to the gym. To be able to provide a good meal for my husband when he gets home after a 10 hour work day, and then have him hold me tight without my stomach hurting. To be able to snuggle with my children without the lingering smell of food on them making me want to vomit. Not being able to do any of that for 7 weeks now makes me feel completely useless, and it's an awful feeling.

Another thing I need to mention is I have never been so grateful for my ever gradually growing relationship with the Lord. I've learned a lot about who God is the past 8 months (thank you D Group!) and have had my eye's opened a little bit more at the sin in my life. I have spent many sleepless nights in bed not knowing how to feel. Going back and forth between feeling self pity and then guilt and being reminded that he is a good Father who sees me in my suffering. For being able to cry out to Him how hard it is to have lost so much control over my life, but then being able to repent and give it all over to Him and know that he's got it all anyway. It's amazing how many times where I finally just break down after a real rough patch and am feeling so hopeless only to wake up and have a much better day.

Alright, I need to move on, All the crying I'm doing writing this is making me nauseous. Have I mentioned how much crying there has been this pregnancy? Well, there has been a lot. Way more than I remember ever happening in previous pregnancies. I'm not quite sure what to do with myself...

No bump pictures yet, because there is no bump. Soon enough I'm sure it'll pop right out!