Michael Austin White. Week 25 + 26

Baby: Our baby boy is the size of a cauliflower & a kale plant these weeks, measuring about 13.5-14 inches long. My apps say that he is estimated to weigh between 1.4-1.6 pounds right now, but we know that last week at 24 weeks he was already an even 2 pounds. Little chunk :-)

Symptoms: Off & on heartburn still creeping up on me. Leg cramps in the pm. Overall heavy pressure in my lower abdomen. Growing a baby is a lot of work! Having all of that extra weight around the core of my body has really thrown off my stability. I feel a little more clumsy than usual. I've caught the corners of counters and doors forgetting that my belly sticks out so far. It takes some extra time putting on shoes. Leaning over even while sitting down takes my breath away. I have to pee all the time. I try to drink 64+ ounces of water a day which leads to having a full bladder non-stop. It's crazy how pregnancy takes over your body and you just learn to adapt to the changes as they come along. I try not to complain because I am very thankful that my body is able to do this. To be able to grow my baby for 10 months is something I will never take for granted.
 
Exercise: Right now I'm just walking 2.5-3 miles 4-5 times a week. I can't wait for warmer weather!

Weight: Up 19 pounds from my pre-pregnancy weight.

Sleep: More on the leg cramps... I only seem to get cramps in my lower legs when I'm sleeping. They've woken me up in the middle of the night several times so far. I've had to get out of bed & jump around a bit or stretch and they seem to go away pretty quickly. I also drink a few ounces of water before trying to go back to sleep. I've heard this gets worse the farther along you are. I also eat at least one banana a day, sometimes two to help with this.

Cravings/food: I started craving Toaster Strudels for breakfast every morning. I eat a piece of fruit and drink a glass of orange juice as well with this new craving. This is also the time of day that I take my prenatal vitamin. Just to feel like there is some nutritional value in my choice of breakfast.

Doctor's appointments: I don't have an appointment scheduled with my OB or specialist until my 28th week. This is the longest gap I've had between appointments.

Clothes: I've picked up a few new maternity tops and jeans this week. I LOVE the maternity tanks from Target. They are great for layering and super comfortable to sleep in too! Jessica Simpson has the best fitting jeans I have found so far. I picked up these bootcut jeans (below)  from her line at Macy's. Macy's has a small Motherhood Maternity section and you can find some good deals on their clearance racks. I've snagged several $10 tops that are supposed to be great for nursing as well.

Thoughts: Throughout the past few weeks I have been buying nursery décor here and there. I've really started to get more and more recently. My family is coming up to visit the first weekend in February and we are going shopping for the crib, changing table, bedding & gliding chair. Ahhh, it's all starting to come together. I can't wait to see our sweet boy's nursery all set up!

These last few weeks have seemed to fly by and I couldn't be more excited. It just means we are one week closer to meeting our son!

25 week bump pic

 

 

Carter's outlet was having a sale so I picked up these cute sleep & play outfits.

I can't wait to use this Milk Snob Cover!

 

 

 

26 week bump pic

 

 

 

Miller loves to lay in Mikey's nursery already! We both think that she is going to be a protective and good big sister to him.

 

Michael Austin White. Week 24

Baby: Our baby boy is the size of a cantaloupe this week. He is measuring about 11.8 inches long and weighing in at an even 2 pounds! He's developing a sleep and wake cycle and even yawns. As his brain grows more and more complex he has started developing memory and thoughts.

Symptoms: No new symptoms this week.

Weight: Up 17 pounds from my pre-pregnancy weight. Woohoo, baby boy is growing bigger and bigger!

Sleep: Oh sleep, how I already miss you. It's hard to get comfortable during night with a belly in the way but I'm starting to get used to it. Still sleeping on my left side and waking up 2-3 times during the night to pee.

Doctor's appointments: This week I had an appointment with my OB on Wednesday and with my specialist on Friday.

My OB appointments are super quick. I see my doctor for maybe 10 minutes at the most. At this appointment I was given the glucose juice to drink an hour before my next appointment with him (at 28 weeks) to test for gestational diabetes. I asked him the cut off point for travel (34 weeks), he listened to baby's heartbeat with the fetal doppler and I was out.

At my appointment with my specialist she did the routine transvaginal ultrasound to measure my cervical length, which is still measuring normal. They also did several measurements of baby's extremities, head, and heart. They told us that little Michael Austin was an even 2 pounds already, wow! We also got our best yet ultrasound picture, check out his little face below.

Cravings/food: I was craving Italian food on New Years Day. Any pasta sounded delicious! So we went to Macaroni Grill and it did not disappoint. I told Mike we should make eating Italian food a New Years Day tradition. I am so excited for our new family traditions :-)

Clothes: I am currently obsessed with www.pinkblushmaternity.com They have the cutest maternity clothes! I've ordered from them a few times and my order ships right away, sometimes even the same day. Tax free, free shipping & great sales. What more could you ask for?

Thoughts: I am so happy to finally be in my 6th month of pregnancy. Not only that but the 24th week is a big milestone in fetal viability. This is often called "viability week". Meaning at 24 weeks your baby is considered viable, he or she has a greater chance of survival (70% according to my specialist)  if born at this time. As a first time mom pre-term labor is often on my mind. Everyone says to just enjoy your pregnancy and not worry about things like that. It's hard not to let it cross your mind, especially if you like to read a lot like I do and come across these kind of articles or stories.

One of the most comforting things I have found to do during this time is just to pray. If I start to feel anxious about anything I just stop and pray about it. I remind myself that I have no control over what is meant to happen. I believe that God has a specific plan for Michael Austin. After all it was Him who blessed us with this sweet boy when the time was right. I've learned that peace of mind can be found in prayer.

"Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God will guard your heart and mind in Jesus."

Michael Austin White. Week 23

Baby: Our baby boy is the size of a grapefruit this week. He is measuring about 11.3 inches long and weighing in at 1.10 pounds. His face is fully formed now and he is also forming little nipples. His lungs are starting to produce surfactant, which will help prep him for breathing air on the outside. He may now startle at loud noises and respond by turning his head, the nerve endings in his inner ear are now fully developed.

Symptoms: I had my first Braxton Hicks contraction this week and oh man was it intense! It only lasted a few seconds but wow, it took my breath away.

I had a surge of hormones take over my body this week. I had TERRIBLE heartburn for about 2 hours one night. It started around 11pm. I paced around the room just waiting for it to go away. I tried drinking milk and just stood there with tears in my eyes hoping it would stop so I could go to sleep, I was so tired. I finally gave in and took 2 Tums and guess what? It went away within 10 minutes. I'm so stubborn about taking any meds. I need to remember that we were given meds like this for a reason.

Weight: I actually lost 3 pounds this week. I wasn't feeling so good from being nauseated and having heartburn. I drank a lot of water and tried to stay hydrated but it was hard for me to eat like I normally do. I ate light meals and snacks throughout the day, nothing sounded good.

Sleep: Sleep deprived! Having nighttime heartburn makes it incredibly hard to sleep. Elevating my head and shoulders on pillows did help though.

Cravings/food: Nothing seemed to sound good this week. I was just so nauseous and dizzy that I ate really bland foods. My appetite came back in full force come the weekend though. Thank goodness!

Clothes: Still living in my same two maternity skinny jeans and leggings. I really need to get a new pair, just so I have something different to wear.

Thoughts: Christmas Day and New Years Eve were both in my 23rd week. Both holidays were emotional days for me. Happy emotions of course. I couldn't help but think how different it will be next year. Michael Austin will be 8 months next Christmas. I can't wait to decorate the house and tree with him right next to us. He'll have his own stocking and we'll begin our own new family Christmas traditions. I had tears in my eyes when the clock hit midnight on New Years Eve. I couldn't believe 2017 was already here, the year that our son will be born. I didn't last long after midnight... I was in my pj's with lavender oil in my diffuser and in bed reading by 12:30am. There isn't anywhere else I would have rather been.

Christmas Day bump pic

 

 LOVE this top! It's so soft & fits perfect! It's non-maternity (from Nordstrom) too.

 

 New Years Eve family photo

#whitepartyof3

 

Michael Austin White. Week 22

Baby: Our baby boy is the size of a coconut this week. He is measuring about 10.9 inches long and weighing in at 15.1 ounces. He is sleeping in cycles of 12-14 hours per day. He is growing eyebrows, lashes and perhaps has the first signs of hair. His hearing is so developed that he can now pick up sounds inside my body- like my heartbeat, breathing & stomach gurgling.

Symptoms: I've really started to look and feel pregnant this week! I feel like I've hit a milestone in my pregnancy. My belly definitely has started to look more fuller- finally. I'm ready for my bump to start growing bigger & bigger!

Weight: I forgot to weigh myself this week :-/

Sleep: I bought an extra pillow to put between my knees when I sleep. I sleep on my left side with two pillows under my head/shoulders to keep me slightly elevated to try and avoid as much nightly heartburn as possible. Despite how cold it's been (we keep our heat at 70 degrees at night) I've been waking up with the blankets off of me, these crazy hormones make me so hot.

Cravings/food: No new cravings. I eat 3 meals a day with healthy snacks (usually fruit) in between. Oh and I have to have a bowl of cereal every night before bed!

Clothes: As of right now I just have 2 pairs of maternity jeans & a few maternity tops. I've bought a few new "flowy" tops and just went up a size, that way I can still wear them post pregnancy.

Thoughts/ideas: I'm recreating a Pinterest project that I saw a few weeks ago. It's a diaper cart for my office upstairs. Michael Austin's nursery is right at the bottom of the stairs so I just plan on filling it with necessities. I posted the picture below to my Facebook page and Instagram account and got SO many great responses from moms about things that I REALLY need in it. Now I'm wishing I would have got a bigger cart :-D

 

Dinner date at Cheesecake Factory

 

 

Mikey's diaper cart

 

 

Thank you sister (Traci) for my super cute new tee, its SO comfy!

 

 

Michael Austin White. Week 21

Baby: Our baby boy is the size of a carrot this week. He is measuring about 10.5 inches long and weighing in at 12.7 ounces. His digestive system is getting ready for being outside of the womb, he's making meconium, the tarry black substance that will be in his first dirty diaper. His testes are still in his abdomen but will drop in the coming weeks once the scrotum finishes developing.

 

Symptoms: Lots of pressure! My the inside of my stomach feels like it's being pulled apart, like a straining feeling. Although this feeling is a little painful it makes me happy to know that it just means our little boy is growing bigger and stronger.

Doctor's appointments: I had an unexpected OB appointment on Friday. Thursday evening I was feeling discomfort in the lower right quadrant of my abdomen, I could feel a knot/ball right under my skin. I called my doctor first thing Friday morning and his nurse told me to come in as soon as I could. They did an ultrasound to determine if it was just baby's elbow that I could feel or a fibroid. As it turns out it was a 2cm fibroid and my doctor said that since I'm so small framed that's why I can see and feel it. He said it's common for women about this time to develop fibroids from the ligaments/muscle layers stretching and growing. As soon as I deliver it will shrink drastically in size but will always be there.

Weight: Up another pound from last week... grow baby grow!

Sleep: Needing a lot more it! I'm still sleeping well and only waking up 2-3 times a night to use the restroom.

Cravings: Just food! Nothing in particular. I'm waking up hungry which is new for me. I usually don't eat breakfast until around 9am but my stomach is already growling when my feet hit the ground which is usually by 7am.

Clothes: Wearing my maternity jeans or leggings everyday. I love the elastic on the sides of maternity tops, they are definitely my favorite. All of my pre-pregnancy tops still fit fine though so I just go back and forth between the two.

Thoughts: We were in Austin this weekend for my brothers graduation. Mike booked my most favorite hotel ever for our trip, Lonestar Court in the domain. I love it there. The rooms (& beds) are comfy, they have a breakfast buffet that is really good, it's pet-friendly and is walking distance to many shops and restaurants. On Saturday night after all of the graduation festivities we went back to our hotel and I took a long much needed nap. I woke up at close to 9pm and we walked over to the new Nordstrom and then grabbed a late night bite at The Yard House. Nordstrom had so many cute baby clothes on sale. Mike was really excited to buy Michael Austin his first (from him) tees & onesies... you can check out one of  his new tees below.