Baby #2 :: Thirty One Weeks

Size of baby: Roughly 16 inches and about 3 lbs - the size of a pineapple according to The Bump and four navel oranges (really??? That's the best they've got?) according to BabyCenter.

Best moment of the week: Watching Noelle interact with our one year old Godson this weekend. Yes, the baby won't be that age for a while, but it's so great to see how good she is with him an how much she loves helping!

Cravings/Aversions: Nothing crazy these days.

What I love: Being in the single digits of weeks to go!

What I'm looking forward to: We're heading to my happiest place on Earth this weekend - IKEA!! Making more headway on the never ending to do list!

Worries: Thankfully things aren't bothering me too much lately - a welcome change for this natural worry wart.

What is different this time around: Just about everything!

Symptoms: Sore/achy joints at night and Braxton Hicks contractions at least a few times a day.

Sleep: It's actually been really good this week. There was even one night I didn't wake up until the alarm went off!

Boy or Girl: My inklings are all over the place lately.

The belly: Getting bigger and bigger! I have a feeling I'm going to shopping for some more maternity shirts in the near future. With this low belly, even really long shirts aren't quite cutting it!

Movement: Pretty sure there's a trampoline in there with baby.

Milestones: Baby continues to gain weight and plump up. All five senses are fully developed and the irises now react to light.

Weight gain/loss: Currently at plus 15. Finally had a healthy weight gain since my last appointment!

Baby #2 :: Thirty Weeks

I know it's a cop out, but life seriously needs to slow down. I would love to make this thing a real blog, but I can't even keep up with weekly pregnancy updates! I decided just to skip week 29 because I never even took a picture and each week melts into the next these days.

Size of baby: A head of cabbage according to BabyCenter and a cucumber says The Bump. Baby is about 16 inches long and weighs around 3 lbs.

Best moment of the week: We finally got our new car! It took almost a month to come in but it was absolutely worth the wait. We got a 2014 Subaru Forester and we're pretty much in love with it. The whole buying a car process took about 5-6 months because I am married to the world's biggest researcher/planner. Seriously. You should see some of the spreadsheets Bryan put together in deciding which cars to look at, budget numbers and finally buying the car. It's ridiculous and awesome at the same time. And yet this is the guy who is so against finding out the gender of our babies!

Cravings/Aversions: I've actually been doing really well and haven't had any crazy or bad-for-me cravings.

What I love: Slowly working on and finishing our house projects. I really, really want to do a separate post about all of our work so I'm not going mention specifics in hopes that it works as motivation for me to do so (ha!).

What I'm looking forward to: Actually, I'm typing this as we're driving to Minnesota for our Godson's first birthday and party! So excited to see Liam and his parents.

Worries: We still don't have a good list of girl names. And I've been seeing our boy name pop up more and more. I love it because I thought it was fairly uncommon. Now I'm starting to second guess it. Our goal is to keep along the lines of why we love the name Noelle. It's unique without being weird and it's not very common or popular. It's a lot harder to do that this time around for some reason!

What is different this time around: Just about everything!

Symptoms: Leg cramps at night, sore/achy joints and Braxton Hicks contractions at least a few times a day.

Sleep: Not bad. Hydration is the key to avoiding those overnight leg cramps.

Boy or Girl: My inklings are all over the place lately.

The belly: I've mentioned before, and you can definitely tell in pictures, that I'm carrying super low and the pressure on my lower pelvis is already getting annoying. Only ten more weeks of that left!! (That was a whole lot of sarcasm by the way.)

Movement: Really good. I haven't felt the need to do any kick counts - don't think I ever did any with Noelle either - but if I realize that I haven't felt baby in a while I just give a slight push on my belly to wake the baby up. Sorry baby! Just consider it early revenge :)

Milestones: Baby's eyesight is developing and the skin is starting to smooth out. Baby can also now grasp things, like a finger. Aww, baby grabbing your finger for the first time...is anything sweeter?!

Weight gain/loss: Currently at plus 12. Next appointment/weight update is 4/25.

Dang - now that's a belly!!

Baby #2 :: Twenty Eight Weeks

Sooo, I swear I posted this on Thursday, but I guess it never went through!

Size of baby: A butternut squash according to BabyCenter and an eggplant according to The Bump. Baby is about 15 inches long and about 2 1/2 pounds.

Best moment of the week: Celebrating baby's first Easter. We actually got to see both sides of the family this year. It was an unexpected and very rare treat!

Cravings/Aversions: Loving cereal, milk, fruit smoothies and fruit in general.

What I love: Right now, a whole lotta everything!

What I'm looking forward to: Same as last week. SpringSpringSpringSpring. If I don't get out of this house soon I might explode. I just.want.to.take.a.walk. We got to get out a couple times this week and the achy hips were worth it!

Worries: Still not any farther ahead in the name game! Although I think I'm getting more and more attached to the front runner for a boy. Had my glucose screening at my appointment today. Will find out tomorrow if I have to go back for the 3 hour test. Fingers crossed!

What is different this time around: Time is flying too fast!!

Symptoms: An achiness in the hips if I do too much and Braxton Hicks as well. Heartburn is much better this time around as baby is much lower and not crowding my upper abdomen as much.

Sleep: Pretty good lately! Just have to remember to stay well hydrated during the day.

Boy or Girl: Leaning toward boy this week - yep, this will definitely change often :o)

The belly: Feels huge!

Movement: Lots! When I lay down for the night this little stinker brings out the trampoline!

Milestones: Baby's muscles and lungs continue to mature and if baby were born today, would have a good chance of surviving. Thank you modern medicine! But stay in there baby! Also, it's a good thing I live milk these days because baby is taking about 250 mg of calcium to harden its skeleton.

Weight gain/loss: So apparently I can't do math or I had the wrong starting weight in my head...this entire time. Talk about pregnancy brain! The correct number here is plus 12. I lost 5 lbs in the first trimester and then the majority if that gain happened in the last 2.5 months. Yikes!!

Picture from Easter!

Baby #2 :: Twenty Seven Weeks

Last week of the second trimester! Woah. Like, serious Joey Lawrence woah.

Size of baby: A head of cauliflower according to BabyCenter and a rutabaga according to The Bump. Apparently we are moving away from the crown-to-rump measurements and going to head-to-toe measurements (although those veggies don't seem like 14 in to me!). Baby is about 14 inches long and about 2 pounds.

Best moment of the week: With the exception of some threenager behavior from our first born, everyone has been in really good moods lately. It just makes life's craziness much easier to deal with. Also, we bought our first brand new car! Unfortunately it's so brand new that we have to wait a couple of weeks for it to be delivered. I'm not so good with that patience thing!

Cravings/Aversions: Salt and sugar all day long. I don't even want to look at the scale.

What I love: Right now, a whole lotta everything!

What I'm looking forward to: SpringSpringSpringSpring. If I don't get out of this house soon I might explode. I just.want.to.take.a.walk.

Worries: Names! We have such a short list of names right now, and not by choice. We have a pretty solid front runner for a boy, but the girl names are just not happening. Luckily we haven't had too much disagreement. If one of us suggests a name but the other doesn't like it, we're pretty good at just leaving it at that. Everyone keeps joking that it doesn't matter anyway. We changed Noelle's name once she was born and it completely threw people for a loop. We had chosen Elizabeth Claire months before she was born and everyone was so confused when we said Noelle Jane was here!

What is different this time around: Feeling like I'm already 8 months pregnant!

Symptoms: Leg cramps at night, Braxton Hicks - overall, I'm feeling pretty good this week. I've had a lot of energy. This is very good considering how busy I've been at work, home, and on some side projects.

Sleep: Not bad. Hydration is the key to avoiding overnight leg cramps and I ditched the giant pregnancy pillow when I realized it was making things worse. That thing was a Godsend last time; just not the case this time around.

Boy or Girl: Leaning toward boy this week - yep, this will definitely change from week to week :o)

The belly: Feels huge!

Movement: Getting stronger and more frequent. Baby is definitely starting to have more of a "schedule". I love knowing when I can expect baby to be active, but I definitely don't freak out if it's not exactly the same from day to day.

Milestones: The previously closed nostrils have opened up and baby is practicing "breathing" through its nose. There is also lots of brain tissue developing so baby's brain is super active.

Weight gain/loss: Plus 3 for now. Next appointment is April 4 so I'll have a new number then.

Baby #2 :: Twenty Six Weeks

Size of baby: An English hothouse cucumber (huh?) according to BabyCenter and a of lettuce according to The Bump about 14 inches and about 1.5 to 2.5 pounds.

Best moment of the week: Finally starting the biggest pre-baby project - starting renovations on Noelle's big girl room! Ripped up the old carpeting in preparation for new carpet and sanded down all of the orange-toned woodwork to get it ready to be painted beautiful, crisp white!

Cravings/Aversions: Wants=milk, peanut butter, fruit, pickles. Don't wants=eggs, string cheese (oh, the insanity!) - pretty much the same this week.

What I love: This belly :)

What I'm looking forward to: Continuing the big girl room renovations this weekend.

Worries: My anxiety has definitely taken a backseat this trimester and I am so grateful!

What is different this time around: More tired, more irritable, more achy - yep, I'm a joy to be around!

Symptoms: Meh, the usual - aches, pains, heartburn, crabbiness.

Sleep: I found that if I stay well-hydrated throughout the day I am much less sore at the end if the day and overnight. Of course this means I'm up once or twice to use the bathroom, but I can normally fall asleep fairly quickly.

Boy or Girl: Leaning towards girl these days, but I'm sure that will change. I honestly don't think about it very much. I'm sure some people who don't find out the sex before birth have a hard time thinking about anything else, but we're able to the focus off of it most of the time. Although, I did look up the Chinese gender chart (which was right for Noelle and is right for my friend who just found out she's having a girl) and it says boy!

The belly: Getting bigger every week! I'm definitely carrying the same as I did with Noelle - just a big basketball! At a work conference last week I stood up from my seat and the people around me (who don't usually see me in our building and didn't see me before I sat down) said they had absolutely no idea I was pregnant. Even though my shape is the same, I'm still definitely carrying lower. There are times I feel this baby is just going to fall right out (gross, sorry). I can only imagine what it's going to feel like in the last few weeks. Also, this week's picture makes me look huge! Although really, it's not the picture making me look huge ;) My doc did say I was measuring ahead at my last appointment, but not by much.

Movement: Getting stronger and more frequent. Baby is definitely starting to have more of a "schedule". I love knowing when I can expect baby to be active, but I definitely don't freak out if it's not exactly the same from day to day.

Milestones: The eyes will soon start to open and the eyelashes are grown in also. Baby is practicing breathing by taking breaths of amniotic fluid.The network of nerves in baby's ears is better developed and more sensitive than before. He or she may now be able to hear voices around me.

Weight gain/loss: Plus 3 for now. Next appointment is April 4 so I'll have a new number then.

Baby #2 :: Twenty Five Weeks

Size of baby: A rutabaga according to BabyCenter and a cauliflower according to The Bump - 13.6 inches to 14.8 inches and about 1.5 to 2.5 pounds.

Best moment of the week: Hmm, I had a good week, but there's just not one big thing sticking out!

Cravings/Aversions: Wants=milk, peanut butter, fruit, pickles. Don't wants=eggs, string cheese (oh, the insanity!)

What I love: Feeling more frequent and stronger movement. When Noelle asks to feel the baby move or give her brother or sister a kiss.

What I'm looking forward to: Getting more things crossed off of the pre-baby to do list! Finally going to take on some major projects this weekends!

Worries: My anxiety has definitely taken a backseat this trimester and I am so grateful!

What is different this time around: Right now, just more tired, more often.

Symptoms: Normal aches and pains and mild heartburn. Starting to get some Braxton Hicks when I'm not hydrated.

Sleep: I found that if I stay well-hydrated throughout the day I am much less sore at the end if the day and overnight. Of course this means I'm up once or twice to use the bathroom, but I can normally fall asleep fairly quickly.

Boy or Girl: Still completely unsure.

The belly: Getting bigger every week!

Movement: Getting stronger and more frequent. Baby is definitely starting to have more of a "schedule".

Milestones: Baby is beginning to exchange that long, lean look for some baby fat. Baby is also growing more hair – and if you could see it, you'd now be able to discern its color and texture!

Weight gain/loss: Plus 3 for now.

Baby #2 :: Twenty Four Weeks

Size of baby: An ear of corn according to Baby Center and a cantaloupe says The Bump - about 11 in and just over a pound!

Best moment of the week: Taking Noelle to her first play! I've mentioned before that Bryan and I want to do what we can to have one on one time with Noelle before her world is turned upside down. I had a great opportunity when we saw that First Stage Children's Theater was doing Pinkalicious. What on Earth is Pinkalicious, you ask? It's a book about a girl who loves, lives, eats too much, and turns - pink, of course! We had a great time and I was so proud of how well-behaved Noelle was. The group definitely knows its audience as there were two, half hour acts and a 15 minute intermission. It was perfect!

Cravings/Aversions: Wants=milk, peanut butter, fruit, pickles. Don't wants=eggs, string cheese (oh, the insanity!)

What I love: Feeling more frequent and stronger movement. When Noelle asks to feel the baby move or give her brother or sister a kiss.

What I'm looking forward to: Getting more things crossed off of the pre-baby to do list! Really feeling the pressure here. We have a lot to do for Noelle's big girl room in order to re-nursery her current room!

Worries: My anxiety has definitely taken a backseat this trimester and I am so grateful!

What is different this time around: Aside from the worsening aches and pains, not too much is different at this point. Although, one thing I did realize recently is that I am much more "go with the flow" this time. I haven't cracked open a pregnancy book once and I barely utilize my pregnancy apps. I really like not being told how I "should be" feeling.

Symptoms: Aches and pains, mild heartburn, sleeplessness/insomnia. The aches and pains are pretty much sidelining me at the end of the night. Not fun.

Sleep: Even the pregnancy pillow isn't helping these days. My hips and lower back are very sore during the night.

Boy or Girl: Still completely unsure.

The belly: Getting bigger every week! I want to do comparisons of my pics from Noelle's pregnancy. I feel much bigger at this point than I did last time.

Movement: Bigger kicks, a roll here and there and my doc confirmed that baby is pretty low. Apparently this is normal after the first pregnancy because things have been stretched out. This makes me a little nervous for the home stretch. I remember how low Noelle felt at the end and how much pressure there was. What's it going to feel like when the baby is already that low?! Yikes!

Milestones: His or her brain is growing quickly now, and taste buds are continuing to develop. Baby's lungs are developing "branches" of the respiratory "tree" as well as cells that produce surfactant, a substance that will help air sacs in the lungs inflate once baby hits the outside world. His or her skin is still thin and translucent, but that will start to change soon.

Weight gain/loss: Ummm, so yeah...new total of plus 3 (previously minus 3). February was all about sugar. March will be a "clean up" month.

I was a complete slacker this week (aka I was insanely busy at home and work) and never took a weekly pic. Instead, you get a picture of my beautiful Noelle at Pinkalicious.

Baby #2 :: Twenty Three Weeks

Size of baby: A large mango according to Baby Center and a grapefruit says The Bump - about 11 in and just over a pound!

Best moment of the week: Bryan and Noelle finally got to feel the baby kick this week!! Bryan was excited of course and Noelle thought it was cool for about two seconds before running off to do something else!

Cravings/Aversions: Still on board with milk for the first time in a crazy long time.

What I love: Feeling more frequent and stronger movement.

What I'm looking forward to: Getting more things crossed off of the pre-baby to do list!

Worries: I have a lot more aches and pains in my very lower abdomen than I did before. Sometimes it worries me but my doctor told me its perfectly normal to feel like I pulled a muscle, and normal to actually pull a muscle.

What is different this time around: Aside from the new aches and pains, not too much is different at this point.

Symptoms: Aches and pains, mild heartburn, sleeplessness/insomnia.

Sleep: I could definitely do without the middle of the night insomnia.

Boy or Girl: Still completely unsure.

The belly: Getting bigger by the day!

Movement: The bigger kicks are also visible now! My whole belly moved right before Bryan felt his first kick! Baby must also be really low because I feel most of the movement super low in my pelvis.

Milestones: Yay for more and more lung development! Baby's hearing is also becoming sharper.

Weight gain/loss: Not weighing myself between appointments because the scales give such different numbers. Total of minus 3 pounds.

Baby #2 :: Twenty Two Weeks

Playing catch up today! I was 22 weeks on February 21.

Size of baby: A spaghetti squash according to Baby Center and a papaya says The Bump - about 11 in and 13-20 oz. It looks like the measurements are wide margins and won't be changing much from week to week, but more so on a monthly basis.

Best moment of the week: Finally getting some things crossed off on the pre-baby to do list.

Cravings/Aversions: Umm, craving ice cream and chocolate like nobody's business. Thanks a lot Valentine's Day.

What I love: Feeling more frequent and stronger movement.

What I'm looking forward to: The ability to breath out of my nose again and not using a box of Kleenex per day. I've had one of those nonstop head colds and it just will. not. go. away.

Worries: Feeling pretty good these days!

What is different this time around: My heartburn isn't as strong at this point compared to last time. Also, my belly button is pretty much an outie at this point, and I know that didn't happen until much farther down the line. And speaking of lines, my linea nigra is nowhere to be seen. I did have one last time, but I can't really remember when it started showing up, so it still might appear.

Symptoms: Still with the round ligament pain.

Sleep: *yawn*

Boy or Girl: I still go back and forth. I think my gut is telling me a girl, but I am just not one of those women who *know* what baby is.

The belly: Garnering lots of annoying, but completely innocent, comments from random coworkers.

Movement: Baby definitely has a pattern of awake/sleep times. I love that I know when I can expect, for the most part, movement. One thing driving me nuts is how much baby loves to aim for my bladder. So many of the kicks and punches land right there!

Milestones: Baby is looking more and more like a miniature newborn as the lips, eyelids and eyebrows become more distinct. Tiny tooth buds are also forming (insert sarcastic teething comment here).

Weight gain/loss: Not weighing myself between appointments so still at a total of minus 3 pounds.

Baby #2 :: Twenty One Weeks

Yikes - this post is a week and a half late! I was 21 weeks on Valentine's Day. I blame a very busy work and home schedule and the fact that I've been some degree of sick for a while now.

Size of baby: A carrot according to Baby Center and a pomegranate says The Bump (those two seem completely unrelated in size!) - about 10.5 in and 12.5 oz. I'm a little confused about the measurements this week. Last week was 6.5 inches and now it's 10.5?? I mean, I know baby is growing very quickly these days, but four inches in a week seems a little crazy. My iPregnancy app says 7.5 inches though, which makes me even more confused!

Best moment of the week: The ultrasound, duh!! As usual, my anxiety was completely unnecessary as the baby looks wonderful! Every other word out of the sonographer's mouth was about the baby looking great and perfect and wonderful! There is just no describing the amazing feeling you get from seeing your little one on the screen. At one point, the sonographer had to push down a bit to get the baby to wake up so she could check out a few other things. When baby did wake up, he/she gave a huge stretch and it was so awesome to actually "see" it happening! The stretch gave us an incredible view of baby's profile and I completely lost it because it was identical to Noelle (in both her u/s pic and real life). As soon as we got home we pulled out her u/s pics, and even though they're different angles and the current one is really blurry because baby wouldn't stay still, the likeness is so evident!

Cravings/Aversions: Eating lots of fruit these days. I also started drinking milk for the first time since I was a little kid! I have not had milk by itself for years and years and years. I just don't like the taste. But lately, I'm gulping it down at mealtime! 

What I love: Feeling more frequent and stronger movement.

What I'm looking forward to: A day with just mommy and Noelle. Bryan is going ice fishing on Saturday so Noelle and I have the day all to ourselves. We'll head to The Domes for a Polish event a group I belong to is putting on. After that we can do whatever we feel like! I plan to have a lot more mommy/daddy and me outings before baby comes.

Worries: Feeling pretty good these days!

What is different this time around: Something I was not expecting is the much, much worse round ligament pain. If I'm laying down on my right side, a cough or sneeze will send me into agonizing pain down the right side if my lower abdomen. I thought that since everything has already been stretched out once before, it would be better this time around. My doc said it's actually the opposite and is completely normal. She did say that as baby grows bigger this will get better for whatever reason. Hopefully she's right!

Symptoms: The RLP mentioned above, increased heartburn and...oh wait, that's plenty right now.

Sleep: Brought the giant pregnancy pillow up this week! Thing is huge and candy cane shaped and oh so comfy.

Boy or Girl: The ultrasound pics really have me thinking girl these days. The profile is just so similar to Noelle's that it's hard for me to think boy. Funnily enough, I was convinced that Noelle was a boy after my scan with her. Oops, sorry love!

The belly: That AM/PM difference I talked about last week? Almost non-existent now! I definitely feel like the belly had a growth spurt this week. So maybe that 4 inch change really is true!

Movement: Baby is super active in the evenings and I love sitting down on the couch and feeling the stronger kicks and punches.

Milestones: Aside from the crazy growth, the initial fluttering movements are turning into full-fledged kicks and nudges. The eyebrows and eyelids are also fully formed. Although, if this baby is like Noelle, he/she will have a crazy head of dark hair and practically non-existent eyebrows!

Weight gain/loss: Total of minus 3 pounds. I think this is the first time in my life I've been upset about losing weight! When I stepped on the scale at the doctor's office my heart just sank. Fortunately though, I am apparently the only one concerned as my doctor just laughed it off. She said in a few months I will be wishing I could complain about this! As long as baby's growth is on track and I am not anemic or feeling unhealthy, it's not an issue.

The pics are kind of hard to see, but here's a scanned picture of our ultrasound with Noelle:

And then another poor quality pic from Baby #2's ultrasound:

After looking at the pictures here, it's harder to see the similarities in the profile. I think that Baby #2's profile is identical to Noelle's "real life" profile more so than the ultrasound picture. I guess we'll just have to wait and see how similar they truly are!