29 Weeks

How Far Along:  29 Weeks

Total Weight Gain: 18 pounds

Maternity Clothes: Nothing else will fit over this belly anymore!

Stretch Marks:  Nope, doing good!

Sleep:  Thanks to my chiropractor, sleep is wonderful!

Best Moment This Week: Without a doubt- getting to see Braxton!!!

Miss Anything: Nope, I am so happy being pregnant right now :)

Movement:  Non- stop!  He loves doing rolls and flips and kicks- I feel him 24/7

Food Cravings:  Cholcolate Milk!  (dont know where that one came from!) But I NEED it every morning!!

Anything make you quesy or sick: Not that I can think of

Gender Predicition-  BOY!

Labor Signs:  Starting to have some Braxton Hicks contractions, they arent bad yet, but they are beginning!

Symptoms:  Tired, Leg cramps, nesting.... the usuals!

Belly Button in or out: almost flat...

Wedding ring on or off: On!  Luckily, no swelling yet!

Looking Forward to: The nursery being all put together

Nursery Progress: Almost done painting, and almost got our handmade quilt done (made by my mom- cant wait to see it!)- so close to being all done!


 Baby is the size of an acorn squash this week!  He is starting to plump up, weighing anywhere from 2.5-3.8 pounds and is 15-17 inches long. He is growing fat deposits under his skin and his energy is surging because of it (yes it is!!!!).

Everything I read talks about him kicking my ribs and crowding them-  pretty sure this baby is still as low as he can get!  He is nowhere near my ribs yet.  In our baby classes they always talk about the baby dropping and how you will feel that- I dont think he can drop anymore than he already is!

This was a fun week! It was full of exciting things :) Monday started the Just Between Friends consignment sale-  this is the best sale ever!!!! Me, Brian, and my mom all went monday after work and it was amazing the amount of things they had there- TONS!!!!!!  We ended up getting a few things that night (at GREAT prices).  I love shopping with those two for Braxton!

Wednesday we had a health screening at work- all my numbers were great! I had good cholestorol, good glucose number, and a good blood pressure! And for doing the screening I got a gift card to Babies R Us!!! WHooo hooo!!!! We still have quite a few of big ticket items left, so this was a huge blessing!!!!

I had to skip the chiropractor last week- so when I went on Thursday it had been 2 long weeks since I had been there and boy oh boy could my body tell!   My upper back had been hurting worse and when she touched the tender spot on my back it hurt so bad- turned out I had a rib out of place!  Thank goodness I am going to see her though- she fixed me up and got me back in good shape- no more missing! Making sure I get there every week for my checkup!!!

Saturday was the funnest day of all (i know its not a word, but i still use it)  We had my mom and Brians parents come over that morning for breakfast together and let them see the nursery.  My mom is handmaking Braxtons bedding- so far she has the bedskirt done and 2 of the pillows and is almost done with his quilt!  I cannot wait to see it all done-  it is absolutly perfect for the nursery and exactly what I wanted!!!! And it is going to be so special for him to have a quilt that his grandma Millie made for him :)

After breakfast we all headed over to Stork Vision for the 4D ultrasound.  We were all so excited to see Braxton and I couldnt wait to see what all he was doing in there that was bouncing my tummy around so much.   But....he decided it was nap time right as soon as the ultrasound started.   And that little boy sleeps like his  momma- hard! Nothing will wake him up.  So the entire ultrasound he slept and didnt move at all.  But it was still good to see him- he has the cutest little chubby cheeks and he was just cuddling like crazy.  Everyone was saying he is going to be a cuddlebug- I knew it! I could tell in my heart a long time ago he was!  He was just cuddled up to me and was using the umbical cord like a little blanket (which makes me nervous)- but oh boy was he sooo cute.  I think he has Brians face- most people who saw him are saying they see my face and Brians chin-  and yes he for sure does have Brians chin!  I could have watched him for hours!  I was so happy to have my mom and Brians parents there to see him too- it was such a cool moment!

Here is our precious cuddlebug just sleeping away!

After the ultrasound me and my mom went back to the JBF sale for the half off day- the bargains we got that day were ridiculous. It was so cheap and we got so much good quality stuff!  I stocked up on Carters and Baby Gap clothes- anywhere from NB to 9 months-  everything was like .50 to 2 dollars max.  I cant wait till I get to dress him- he is going to be one cute litte guy!!!

I got a surprise mini makeover from Brian and my mom too- Brian took me to get my eyebrows done at the salon- its the little things that make me so happy :)  and my mom colored my hair for me and we all just spent the day together-  it really was the perfect day.  I was so so so happy.

Sunday our friends The Beards came over and painted the nursery for us!!! We are painting it grey with one wall having grey and white stripes.  So they did the first round of paint and then are coming back next week to finish up the stripes.  It looked SO good!!  While the husband was painting me and taylor did some organization and re decorating the house, which made my nesting instincts so happy :)

That night my grandparents took the whole family out to dinner and then we came home and crashed!  This was probably one of the funnest and eventful weekends we have had- and we were exhausted!!! 

I am so in love with my family, and our son, and my loving husband.  Life is so fun- I love laughing with Brian and laughing so hard that we cant stop and you just start crying because you are laughing so hard.  I cant wait until Braxton is here to add to our joy! :)

3RD TRIMESTER! 28 WEEKS!

How Far Along:  28 Weeks

Total Weight Gain: 15 pounds! Whew! Getting up there!

Maternity Clothes: All the time!

Stretch Marks:  Not so much!

Sleep:  Wonderful

Best Moment This Week: Baby Class with the hubby :) we had fun!

Miss Anything: Having Energy!

Movement: Oh boy- he loves to kick! He might just be a little soccer player! Kick counts rarely ever go 20 min!

Food Cravings: Root beer! and Chocolate

Anything make you quesy or sick: Not really...doing good now!

Gender Predicition- ITS A BOY!

Labor Signs: None!!

Symptoms:  Hot flashes, contractions, emotional, so tired again!

Belly Button in or out: Almost flat......so weird to see

Wedding ring on or off:  On

Looking Forward to: Seeing braxton on the 4D Ultrasound

Nursery Progress: All the furniture is there!!!!!  I love looking in there :)



This week we had our 2nd baby class- Caring For Your Baby- it was really great and we learned alot! It was very hands on and had lots of great teaching points for us!  I have offically switched over from pregnancy books to parenting books-  I am reading Happiest Baby on the Block and then Baby Wise and I  have a list of books lined up to read after those :)

I also had my monthly doctors visit this week- it was exciting because now I start to go every 2 weeks and they scheduled all my appts from now until Braxton is here! And we got to schedule another ultraound- at 34 weeks- hopefully at this one they will be able to estimate what he will weigh at birth! Praying for under 9 pounds!!! I've been doing research on what factors determine a babies birth weight and it seems like most of it just comes down to genetics.  Hoping and praying he is healthy and weighs in the 7-8  pound range! Seems like my family has small babies, but seems like big babies run in Brians family- so who knows how lil Braxton will be!

We also start with kick counts this week-  twice a day I have to count his kicks- I have 1 hour to get 10 kicks in-  I never need an hour though- he averages 14 minutes to complete his kicks!

I still think he is going to be such a cuddlebug- I really think sometimes he kicks just so I'll hold my stomach and he can feel me.  Every time I put my hand on him he quiets down and I can just feel him cuddling up in there.

Sunday the girls came over to plan out one of our baby showers- it was fun to talk about everthing- I cant wait!  Its going to be really cute- I'm so thankful for my hostesses and all the thought and time they are putting into this for me and brian.  Both of our baby showers are going to be co-ed- I just dont get why baby showers are only for women.  This is me AND brian's baby- not just mine.  He has been by my side every single step of this pregnancy and I want him there to see the gifts people give to Braxton and be able to enjoy those happy parties with me.  We're a team and I believe that were in this together :)

Here's to a happy and healthy 3rd Trimester!!!!!!

27 Weeks

How Far Along:  27 Weeks

Total Weight Gain: 15 pounds

Maternity Clothes: Stocked up! Now just need to find something to wear for our pictures!

Stretch Marks:  Just the few, keeping it to a minimum!

Sleep:  Pretty good! No pains for the most part!

Best Moment This Week: Baby Class & Brian and dad putting together the crib

Miss Anything: I feel like I say it every week- but cuddling up with my husband w/o a maternity pillow between us!

Movement: Kicks are getting harder and harder!

Food Cravings:  Mexican and Chocolate

Anything make you quesy or sick: Watching birthing videos :), smell of smoke

Gender Predicition- ITS A BOY!

Labor Signs: None!!

Symptoms:  Nesting (can that happen this early?!? cuz it is!), emotional, sensitive, tired

Belly Button in or out: In!

Wedding ring on or off:  On- still not swollen yet! Crossing my fingers it stays this way!

Happy or Moody:  Happy and emotional

Looking Forward to: Our next ultrasound!

Nursery Progress:  It looks like an actual nursery now!  Crib is up - all we are waiting on is the dresser and then painting!


Baby is the size of a Rutabega! No idea what that is, but I like saying the word :) He is breathing and showing brain activity- he should weigh 1.5-2.5 pounds and be 13.6-14.8 inches long. He should be rotating to get into the head down position (crossing our fingers anyways!)

Friday me and my mom had a 1/2 day off together- so we spent the afternoon running errands for Braxton and finding little things we needed for his room and the house.  It was really fun.  This baby is going to be so spoiled by love!!!

We had our first baby class this week- it was ALL day Saturday about The Birth of The Baby.   It was definitely overwhelming for me- we watched 3 couples go through natural labor, watched a video of an actual epideral, and a video of a labor with an epidural.  I'm pretty sure everyone knows, but just in case- GIVE ME THE DRUGS! I am not interested in the slightest in natural labor!  Seems absolutely crazy to me!  Right before we took a lunch break, I started to feel really dizzy and lightheaded and broke into a cold sweat- I was just so overwhelmed with the labor my body was reacting.  Luckily, we got a lunch break and I started to feel better.

We ate at Old School Bagel for lunch, which ended up being ironic because when we came back to class the first thing we learned was that being dilated to 10cm is the size of a bagel! Yowza!!!!  We learned so much though, all about labor, contractions, how to handle it if we wake up at 3am with contractions, how to time everything, when to go to the hospital, breathing techniques through all the different stages of labor, everything! Brian is a pro!  He learned how to coach me through contractions and how to keep me calm and how to get me to breathe right and when to take action.   We had a quiz at the end and he got every question right- I love that he is taking all this seriously and I feel completely at ease with him taking care of me and getting me through what is to come! He is seriously the best husband and best dad ever!

I love how our hospital keeps the baby in your room- pretty sure everyone knows this too, but just in case- I want him there.  I dont want them to take him away for me to rest or anything else unless its for health reasons.  I cannot wait to hold him and want him right there so we can  look at him all the time :)

Sunday my dad came over and him and Brian put together the crib. 

 The nursery is looking sooooo good! It actually looks like Braxtons room now :)  I love watching my dad "coach" Brian and teach him manly things- it makes my heart so happy- and now everytime I see them together  I just think about how Brian will do this with our son. I love that he is learning so many new things and learning how to be a teacher and coach- our son is going to be so lucky to have him as a daddy!

26 Weeks

How Far Along:  26 Weeks

Total Weight Gain: 12 pounds (down 2 from last week)

Maternity Clothes:  YES! Thanks to a sweet friend I was blessed with clothes that I can fit into!!!

Stretch Marks:  Just the few, keeping it to a minimum!

Sleep:  So much better now since the chiropractor!

Best Moment This Week: Brians Birthday!!!!

Miss Anything: Being able to clean without hurting!

Movement: He is a mover! I love feeling him, so glad Brian can feel him now! Now I just need to get my mom to feel him :)

Food Cravings:  Hmmm..Mexican and Chocolate- just like before pregnancy ha!

Anything make you quesy or sick: ALL healthy food :) please dont put a salad, fruit, or veggies in front of me! yuck!

Gender Predicition- ITS A BOY!

Labor Signs: None!!

Symptoms:  Tired, emotional, organizing everything!, back pain

Belly Button in or out: In!

Wedding ring on or off:  On- however with the super hot weather, my fingers are starting to swell and its getting tighter!

Happy or Moody:  Happy with some emotional spurts :)

Looking Forward to: Taking our baby classes- so super excited

Nursery Progress:  Ordered the Crib and dresser- once they get here all the big furniture will be in the nursery!!


Braxton is now the size of a head of lettuce!  He weighs in at 1.5- 2.5 pounds and is 13.5-14.8 inches long. His immune system is getting ready by soaking up my antibodies and he is breathing!  His eyelids have finally opened and his eyelashes have all formed.  He can move his head all around, so cool to think about all this!

My lower back pain on my right side was getting to be so horrible- to the point that walking was impossible, I couldnt put weight on my right leg.  I couldnt lay down, the pain was unbearable.  The only thing I could do to relive a tiny bit of the pain was to lay on the opposite side of the pain and put ice on my lower back.  It didnt make it better, but just a little less worse!  So I finally gave in a decided it was time to pay up and go to the chiropractor.   I called my friend who has her own business and made an appointment to come in that week - I did check with my doctor first, and she was completly on board with this! Thank goodness!

Well that had to be one of the best decisions I have made in this pregancy- I'm kicking myself for not doing it sooner!!! She checked me all out and did some adjustments- and boy oh boy did it ever help.  We got my pelvis back in alignment and ALL my absolutly horrible pelvic pain was gone, along wtih all my hip pain! It was like a miracle!!!!  My back pain is hurting partly because my back muscles arent strong enough to support me and the baby- thats what I get for not staying in shape- but we are working on it!  She told me to think positive thoughts, stop stressing, drink tons of water, and start walking and doing pre natal yoga!

It is amazing how much better my days and nights are now! Sleeping is back to normal, I dont have to cry myself to sleep anymore or wake up in the middle of the night with intense pains!  I cant say it enough, if you are pregnant go to the chiropractor!!!!

I was also blessed this week by a friend at work- she actually lives in Colorado but we work for the same company-  she just had a baby boy and she mailed me her maternity clothes to have!  It couldnt have come at a better time, I was starting to outgrow all my clothes and we just didnt have the money for me to buy anything else- maternity clothes arent cheap!  When I got her boxes full of clothes I just wanted to cry- thank you thank you thank you Heather for your generosity!  You have blessed us more than you will know!

This was a tough week on Brian-  he had two guys who hit the back of his truck and then road raged him coming home from church Wednesday night-  they chased him down and blocked him in and threatened him- so scary.  I was so thankful he made it home safe and sound without being beat or even worse.  We called the cops and had to turn in a report-  made us think about so much- getting in shape, taking self defense classes, being prepared if this happens again.   My parents were so worried about him, that just messes with your head when you are threatened and harassed like that.  I think my dad called/texted every hour just to check on him (okay maybe a slight exaggeration, but not much).  He sat down and talked to us about how brian felt in the moment and afterwards and how to handle the situation in the future and what we need to do to protect ourselves. My mom was worried sick about him too- but we were all so thankful nothing worse happened!  On top of that, he ended up breaking his toe this week too! So painful and absolutely nothing you can do for it! It was pretty bad- completely black, blue, and purple :(

This week was Brians 29th Birthday!!! I absolutely love planning his birthdays- i love going all out and making the day about nothing but him!  This year was a little harder on me being pregnant-I just didn't have the same energy to do all the planning I normally do, so it was low key, but still had so much thought and love poured into it :)

Early Saturday morning- Brians actual birthday- we got up and headed over to dads- he had asked Brian to come over and help him put something on his truck.  Thankfully, Brian agreed- bc there was actually a big surprise waiting for him!  We got there and my dad told him to pull the big box from the backyard to the front and go ahead and open it-  when he did, he found the side steps to his truck!!!! What an awesome and thoughtful birthday present.  My dad knew how much Brian wanted this and decided to get them and then help him put them on as well.  We are so blessed!  Brian was like a little kid he was so excited- and then the hard work began...in the over 100 degree heat.  But Brian did all of it!  Dad coached him and supervised and checked it all over, but Brian did the hard work and installed his own sidesteps! They also doctored up his broken toe- wrapped it really good for him- poor guy, he did all that work on the broken toe! I was so proud of him accomplishing that and watching him work hard with my dad.  He could not wait to show them off to all the family and friends! 

For lunch we went to a local pizza restaurant with my mom and some of our friends to celebrate.  The night before me and brian had stayed up until 11pm making his Batman Birthday cake-  it didn't turn out too good, but it was alot of fun baking together :)  The pizza was delicious and the company was wonderful- great conversations and smiles from everyone.  I actually had to end the lunch bc we were going to be late to our next birthday stop!  Big thank you to those who came out to celebrate with us!!!!  My mom gave Brian part of his bed liner he wanted for the truck!  Both my mom and dad did their research this year and found out what Brian really wanted and did their best to help him get it! Thank you to both of you- means alot to me as his wife that you care about him and love him like a son!

After that it was all about me and Brian-  we went to see Batman (yes I was terrified to go to a movie theater, but I did it for him!)  It was one long movie, I was ready for nap-  but all that mattered was that Brian loved it!  We decided to grab some food after the dinner and went over to moms and ate with her and relaxed for the night.  I ended up giving Brian 3 gifts:  1 from Baby Girl, 1 from Braxton, and 1 from Me.  Baby Girl got him a new DVD player (we needed one so badly), Braxton got him a private gun lesson, and I got him some new jeans, shoes, and glasses! I'd say Brian had a pretty good birthday :)

Sunday we had his family come down and had lunch with them and my dad and Mikki.  I got Brian a pickup truck cookie cake for this day, and it turned out soooo cute!!!! We had some BBQ for lunch and then had the afternoon free-  Brians family ended up going back home so we decided to go over to dads and hang out and do a little more truck work.

It was a tough and hard week emotionally and physically, but hopefully I was able to brighten up Brians week with his birthday celebrations :)  Next birthday we will be celebrating is BRAXTONS!!!!! Cannot wait!!!

25 Weeks

How Far Along:  25 Weeks

Total Weight Gain: 14 pounds

Maternity Clothes:  Love them!

Stretch Marks:  Just a little bit- hoping to keep it at a minimum!

Sleep:  Not so good- hard to get comfortable and lots of body aches

Best Moment This Week: Brian feeling the baby move!!!!

Miss Anything: Again....cuddling with my husband!

Movement: ALL the time!! I love feeling it!

Food Cravings:  Chocolate

Anything make you quesy or sick: The smell of smoke and stopping and going fast in a car

Gender Predicition- ITS A BOY!

Labor Signs:  None thank goodness!

Symptoms:  Horrible Siatic Nerve pain, tiredness

Belly Button in or out: In- but its getting closer and closer to being flat with my tummy!

Wedding ring on or off:  On

Happy or Moody:  Happy and majorly organized!

Looking Forward to: Going to the chiropractor!!!

Nursery Progress:  Its coming along! Working with Taylor to design the room- hopefully it will be painted soon!


Braxton is now the size of a cauliflower- measures about 13.5-14.5 inches long and weighs 1.5-2.5 pounds.

To continue the story from last week.....Thankfully, by the time I woke up the rash had gone away about 90%- it seemed like it went away as fast as it came on. I called my doctor and let her know the entire story- my nurse was so nice and apologized over and over for how the on call doctor spoke to me.  They wanted me to come in so they could check everything out.  Even my doctor ended up being stumped! She said she had never in all the years of practicing had she ever seen anything like that.  She did a bunch of tests on the baby to make sure it wasn't affecting him and everything was okay- and thankfully Braxton was perfectly fine!  She wanted to go ahead and run a full blood panel just to be thorough and make sure we checked out everything- 6 viles of blood later and I was good to go!

The next morning I had my glucose diabetes testing- I had been dreading this for awhile and when I was doing lab work the day before I watched as a pregnant woman threw up for  a lllooonnngggg time because of this test-  but thankfully I had my husband right beside me just in case!  The drink wasnt bad at all- just tasted like orange soda!  My stomach didnt feel great for the hour, not sure if it was the drink or if I was just so nervous I was going to throw up like that other lady- but I made it through!  The blood draw hurt soooo bad this time- they had to do the other arm since I had just had blood drawn the day before.  It took everything in me to not cry- and even 4 days later my arm is still bruised :(

Later that day I got my lab results back from mondays 6 viles of blood- everything was normal which was great to know that Braxton wasnt affected by the rash- but they did find out that I'm  now anemic... if thats the worst news I got, I can handle that! However, even after all this testing, they still have no idea what the rash was or what caused it :(  I just hope it doesnt come back!

Wednesday was my moms actual birthday! We brought her a cake to work and then that night we all went to eat at Chilis and celebrated together!  I cant wait until next year when Braxton will be here to celebrate all the special events with us :)

This was the first week Brian was finally able to feel Braxton moving- I was laying down resting and he was moving and kicking so hard that it was actually moving my hand so I told Brian to put his hand where the baby was, and sure enough he was able to feel our little guy!  It was really cool. I'm so glad we can both feel him now and I can share that special feeling with Brian.

By Friday I still hadnt heard back from my diabetes testing and I didnt want to have to wait over the weekend, so I went ahead and called in to see if I could get the results-  I talked to my nurse and she said I scored a 109 which was perfect and that I didnt have to do the 3 hour test!!!! Hallelujah!!! I cannot tell you how relieved and excited I was!  Best news ever!!! :)

Saturday, the two girls who are putting on the baby shower asked if they could come over and have a little planning meeting with me- I am so thankful to them- they are putting in so much thought and effort and time into this and it just blows me away how lucky I am to have them. And they are including me in all the decisions- which I appreciate more than they know.  I get to help decide the theme and colors and everything going into the party so that it feels like "me" still.  Huge Huge thank you to Taylor and Penny- there is no way I could thank you enough for what you guys are doing for me!  And by the way...it is going to be so adorable! I cannnot wait!!!

Sunday I went on an orginazational tirade! I cleaned the house top to bottom and started moving stuff and organizing- I thought I was doing okay... until about 5 hours later when my back was killing me and it was difficult to walk.  So at that point I decided it might be smart to rest awhile- well the pain just kept intensifying- I had waited too long to rest.  My siatic nerve was shot.  It hurt soooo bad.  I couldnt lay, sit, stand, walk, nothing- no weight could be put on my right leg at all.  The pain was shooting and non stop.  I figured it would go away after a little bit, but I was wrong.  At 11pm at night I was still in agonizing pain- enough pain that I just broke down and could do nothing but cry.  Somehow I finally fell asleep- and in the morning even though it wasnt completly gone, at least it was down to a dull pain. Lesson Learned:  I cannot do the things I used to be able to do.  Rest is a must!

Baby Girl has always been attached to me, but lately she is waaayy attached- its so sweet.  She makes sure she is always right by  my side and even more protective of me than usual.  Usually when I am getting ready in the morning she would lay right outside the bathroom door the entire time, now when I'm taking a shower she lays right on the other side of the tub and when I am getting ready in the morning, she lays on the bathroom floor at my feet.  When I am eating at the table, she is either right next to my chair or under the table laying at my feet.  Don't get me wrong, she is still a daddy's girl and loves to cuddle up with Brian too- but its like she knows I'm pregnant and is glued to my side. I love it!

And I already feel like Braxton is a little cuddle bug- I don't know how to describe it, my heart just feels like sometimes he kicks me just so I'll hold (him) aka my stomach- I can just feel him calm down every time I do it.  He is going to be the sweetest little boy ever, I just know it!  And if he is anything like his daddy- well then I will be the proudest momma in the world! I can't wait for him to get here! We broke the 100 day mark this week- only 14 more weekends left and our son will be here!!!!!