15 week Bumpdate

Total Weight Gain: The scale is packed. I'll be back on this next week!

Symptoms: My lower back is getting tighter, but I'm stretching lots and taking breaks from the moving activities.

Size of the baby: 4 inches and 2.5 oz!

Sleep: Still battling the lack of tiredness in the evening, but it's really not that bad. Now I just sleep 10:30-7:30 instead of an earlier shift.

Best Moment of this Last Week:  Starting all this packing! Overwhelming sometimes, but I'm so thankful Joseph and I have tried as hard as we have to not accumulate junk. AND that my mom is the best energizer bunny ever!

Movement: Lots and lots of flutters this week! 
Cravings: Ice cream- and this is coming from a girl who can always take or leave ice cream

What I Miss: Sleeping through the night without potty breaks
What am I looking forward to: Being home! We'll be in Salem on Monday night. I can't wait :)

Milestones: First odd craving this week (Ice Cream lol)

How is Daddy? Out in the wilderness of Alaska out of cell service. Can't wait to see him in just a few days!

14 Week Bumpdate

14 weeks and feeling great!

Total Weight Gain: Still staying right at 1.5 lbs

Symptoms: Does unmotivated count as a symptom? lol! I really have to push myself to want to do anything active. But, every day as I go on a walk or do some yoga or weight work, I have such a feeling of accomplishment.

Size of the baby: 3.5 inches- we've got a little lemon :)

Sleep: I've hit a really fun patch of tired all day, insomnia most nights. But changing some evening wind-down habits has helped a lot :)

Best Moment Last Week:  Getting to celebrate Mother's Day as a mom, with my mom. 

Movement: None this week. 

Cravings: Still mexican :) 

What I Miss: Knowing that all my shirts fit. It's been a week of weeding out the ones that can no longer button!

What am I looking forward to: Moving home!! Joseph and I are so thrilled to be moving to our hometown of Salem in just over a week. It's a whirlwind, but sometimes the Lord opens a lot of doors very very quickly :)

Milestones: I bought my maternity swimsuit for this summer. I'm looking forward to feeling super cute as the weather warms.

How is Daddy? Busy getting ready for his trip to Alaska this week. I'm really glad he gets to take this man time adventure with his brothers. 

13 Week Bumpdate

This bump doesn't seem to be disappearing anytime soon!

Total Weight Gain: So.. our scale needs batteries. I'll get back to this one next week.

Symptoms: Not as tired! A little tight in my lower back, but I'm helping that with exercise and stretching.

Size of the baby: About the size of a peach (3 inches long)

Sleep: Waking up more in the night. Too many bathroom breaks :)

Best Moment Last Week:  Getting to be the grateful recipients of the best baby loot: A beautiful crib, changing table, carseat, multiple strollers, and a big stack of wooden puzzles. Thank you so much Montague family! We are so blessed by you!!

Movement: Little, little flutters here and there. 

Cravings: Nothing too crazy, but I just want to eat lots of tacos and taco salads :)

What I Miss: Not inspecting my cheeses to see if they are pasteurized or not ;)

What am I looking forward to: My first Mother's Day as a mom to be!

Milestones: My belly button as totally shallowed. Not sure if that's a very big milestone, but it makes me laugh.

How is Daddy? Incredible. Although he has a tendency to shoot down my name suggestions. 

12 Week Bumpdate

12 Weeks!

Since announcing that Joseph and I are expecting a little one coming this November, I have been blown away by the love and support of everyone! This bear cub has been prayed over long before it came into being and I wanted to share a little of that joy with you all! But if you ever get tired of reading about my pregnancy, I don't blame you!

 I found a set of questions on another blog that seemed to give a fun update so I am going to give it a go...although I reserve the right to NOT post my “Total Weight Gain” at ANY point! ;)

Total Weight Gain: 1.5lbs

Symptoms: Tired afternoons and hungry a lot

Size of the baby: 3 inches head to rump

Sleep: Good at night, but the naps are even more heavenly

Best Moment Last Week: Our ultrasound! Getting to see the baby move and stretch and squirm, hear the heartbeat, and meet the midwife were all so reassuring. 

Movement: I felt movement at 10 weeks a couple of times, but not much since. 

Cravings: Lots of dairy and fruit. And beef. And salads. And Mexican everything. And I'm resisting my extreme desire for cinnamon rolls!

What I Miss: My plethora of pants options.

What am I looking forward to: More consistent energy and motivation to exercise. Thanks to all those who joined in my May challenge to exercise consistently with me! Still want to join? Message me here or on my Facebook.

Milestones: Being able to cook without the smell bothering me anymore!

How is Daddy? Amazing. He handles my mood shifts like a champ and still makes me feel like a princess.

Here's a little back log on baby growth:

Little hiking buddy coming soon!

7 weeks

9 weeks

10 weeks

Sushi Time

Anyone else a sushi lover? Yum! With all the white rice and tiny bits of fish, though, I feel like I could eat my weight and not feel satisfied. Enter this brilliant find! I will claim no authorship  but I am so thankful to Julie of The Survivals of Jewels blog for this gem. :)

Can't wait to put this on next weeks menu!

Mexican Chicken and Cauliflower "Rice" Casserole

Today's healthy recipe is from Sandy's Kitchen. If you haven't checked out her website, it's such a great resource!

This is a great hearty recipe for the cooler days we are dealing with. Also, now that I'm in Asian food land, I'm craving all the Mexican from home. :) I'll be testing this out in my kitchen this week!

Note: If you are not losing as quickly as you had hoped, use mozzarella instead of Mexican cheese for a higher protein and lower fat content.


What's cooking in your kitchen this week?

Where are you putting your faith? And other Urgent Care musings.

This has been a trying few weeks for me. Emotional ups and downs have always been a battle for me, and I am just really ready to step off the roller coaster for good.

For starters, I've been dealing with nausea since mid-December. Nope. Not pregnant. But comically fitting for the girl who is trying to suppress baby desires to get non-pregnant morning sickness. You can imagine the roller coaster of emotions I let myself ride with that. And here I am, almost through January, still nauseous, and what's more, odd abdominal pain for a couple days. Kidneys working hard in there maybe? And then, Are my eyes kind of yellow? Yes, yes they are. Maybe I've watched too much House, but liver failure isn't exactly something I'd love to push to the side. And so, to the Urgent Care I went.

----

A few days ago, before any of the extra symptoms and fear-fight that came with, Joseph asked me "What do you think the Lord is trying to teach you through all this?"

Woa. Embarrassingly enough, I hadn't asked that yet. Would could he be trying to teach me? And like a light bulb:
Peace

I want to be a woman of peace. I want people to be attracted to me because of my calmness in the midst of crazy life, the ability to bring perspective in stressful times.

Before, I have been putting my faith in the strength of my faith, in my ability to muscle through, but to have this kind of steadiness, calmness, consistency, peace, I must put my faith in the unchanging character of God.

And somehow, a midst the craziness, I get it. He is enough. My test came back all very "unremarkable", which has it's sighs of relief. The realization that I paid a doctor a lot of money to draw blood, give me an IV, cover me in sticky jelly, and then tell me I am perfectly "unremarkable" is less frustrating when I remember that I don't want the attention in a hospital setting. Unremarkable to them is a blessing.

And if this nausea doesn't ever go away, I will still trust and believe in my unchanging Lord. I just might need to be reminded not to complain sometimes. ;)