Bump Update - Week 30 & 31 on the East Coast!

It would be really silly to try and elaborate on how amazing it was to visit the east coast. There just aren't adequate words for how perfect it felt. I'm just going to post some pictures and hope it captures how grateful I am to be able to visit home, to have Ed in great health, to have such an amazing family and to have friends who are so generous with their lives and share so much time with me. I came home feeling very humbled and thankful for all the moments I had with those that mean so much. I know, I'm a huge sap, and I wish I could blame it on pregnancy, but no, I'm just completely in love with my friends and family! :)

Dinner in Alexandria, picture stolen from Michelle :) 

Emilia's first visit to Omi's house

Next photographable moment was the baby shower. There were several pictures of me opening presents and of the group but I feel like this one present represents my general struggle to open gifts with my belly and the table in the way. It was a wonderful brunch. My friends are way, way too generous. I'm very thankful. Also, I may or may not have had three servings of french toast. We are talking small plates here... but still... I could've eaten another 2 plates. :)

 Ken's birthday was up next! He got some fun things, one of the best being a book for him to read aloud to Emilia and my baby. We were all singing along when prompted, of course.

And then Christmas was upon us before we knew it...

Somebody loooooved her uncle. If ever I felt her fussing, I just walked over to Ed and had him say nice things to her. He seemed to know exactly what to do. Bodes well, yes? :)

Those pictures leave out so many other wonderful moments: karaoke, dinner with Carolyne's close friends, dinner with Ed's close friends in VA, a massage from Laura, Ken's birthday lunch, lunch with Lizzy, dinner with Michelle.... just little moments that didn't get the camera out but were unforgettable nonetheless. I could go on, but this would be the world's longest post. So let's skip to the baby stuff and leave the pictures with a huge, ginormous thank you.

Bump updates! Two weeks in one... 

How far along? 31 Weeks today

How Big Is Baby? Baby feels huge! Simultaneously bumping the top of my belly and my hip joint. Last week we were a 15.7 in cabbage and today we're a 16.25 in group of four navel oranges. I have no idea how they come up with this stuff. My midwife said baby is due for a growth spurt. I don't know where the room is gonna come from....

Sleep: Still waking pretty regularly thanks to bathroom breaks and joint/muscle pain, but I'm mastering this whole zombie functioning in the middle of the night. Guess this is sleep training. May need to invest in a biiiiig body pillow. Poor Ed is getting less and less space as I get bigger and acquire more pillows!

Best moment this week: Just being with family, seeing friends and having people feel my belly. It never happens here so I love when I get my belly rubbed. Seeing Carolyne's face when the baby moved around was just amazing - but seeing Omi's face when she met Emilia was 10 times as amazing.

Movement: What a wiggly worm! Seems the visit home was well timed, because this baby was really ready to show off for everyone. It took awhile at some points but mostly baby was plenty happy to show everyone wiggling talents. All arms and legs in there apparently.

Symptoms: Heartburn has taken a break! Yay! Other than that, I'm just really tired, very frequently. I'm swelling a bit for the first time. My feet were like hot dogs on that flight home. I've been instructed to take more epsom salt baths which should help, and to generally rest. I can get behind that protocol!

Food cravings/aversions: Ice cream. Ice cream of all kinds. All the time ice cream. No aversions anymore but I'm still mostly avoiding pickles and 'stir fry.' 

Gender: Can't believe how soon we'll all find out. 9 weeks is not very long, especially when you consider some women give birth around 38 weeks. That'd be the week after my birthday. Yeesh!

Belly Button in or out? Surprisingly, no developments here. I thought for sure we'd be out by now, but it's still pretty normal looking until I'm on my back.

What I miss: Being able to sit quietly. Lately, no matter what I do, this little one is active all the time and makes it hard to just sit and zen out. If the constant waking during the night is sleep training, this is definitely life training.

What I am looking forward to: Our childbirth prep class starting this week. I feel pretty ready and positive about the whole birth experience, but I also feel like there's an experience worth having in taking a prep class.
 

Funny moment of the week: Walking into moms house with Ed and all my high school friends... so weird to think of us all doing the same thing some 10 years ago for game nights and random get togethers.

Labor Signs: Very infrequent braxton hicks. So weird when those come up... it's like my belly turns into cement!

Weekly Wisdom: If you're lucky enough to have an amazing family and a loving group of friends, do your best to thank them and tell them how much you care for them. Hug them often and never take for granted they know how you feel.  

Milestones:  Ed returns to work this week! He'll be taking it slow but I know he's very eager to try to get back to normal. Most of the visit home felt good for him, aside from standing or sitting for elongated periods, but now he knows he'll need to be aware of that when he's at work and manage his energy accordingly. I'm very happy for him but sad to lose my company here at home. The kitties and I will miss the companionship... and help getting off the couch. :)

July 4th Weekend

Well! I am sorry for my absence! I've been pretty under the weather, and being at the computer has unpleasant to consider. With nothing new going on thanks to feeling poor-ish, I can catch up on some past activities, like our 4th of July weekend! We had a chance to go visit Dad and Debbie before Ed left the country, and to spend time at their beautiful new house. It was a wonderful visit. I'm gonna rely on the pictures here to tell the story mostly and excuse myself from writing too much. Forgive me? :)

We had a really nice drive in, and even stopped to take a couple pictures along the drive...

So on the way in, Ed pointed out this cloud he said 'looked pink.' I agreed and tried to get a good picture of it. It's the part right by the tip of that mountain.

As we got closer, further through the mountains, we realized, it wasn't just a cloud. It was part of a huge chain of smoke clouds coming from this crazy fire on the other side of the valley where D&D live. When we drove through town you could actually see flames, in daylight! Later we found out it was the 'Bison Fire.' (Interesting time lapse of one view of it here)

The cats were super happy to see us of course. D&D have this great backyard the kitties like to roam around in. I imagine them living out safari fantasies. Their home was just fantastic, a much better layout for visitors and hanging out.

Their fantastic herb barrel... I'm ready to steal it!:

That night we went for a walk and you could really see the flames. Forgive how unclear it seems, this was the best I could do with my iPhone at night.

We went for a great hike at the foothills to Tahoe. You could see the Bison fire burning in the distance. That fire was just... nuts. I've never seen anything like it in person, only on the news.

The next day before we started on our journey home, we spent the morning/early afternoon at Lake Tahoe. It was wonderful. The water was slightly less freezing than our previous summer visit. you could actually stay in the water for a little while - once you got past the shock of the initial dive. I love swimming in Tahoe. I'm terrified of dark water, and there, you can see straight down to the bottom so easily - I feel safe! I could float around forever.

Debbie hangin' in the little hutch they brought. It was a godsend for me, you all know I get my 10 mins of sun a day and then I'm put in my little shady hide-y hole. :)

I even got to break out my fancy swimsuit! I bought this for our honeymoon, I'm a sucker for bright red bathing suits. But, it just didn't fit last September. I hadn't lost any weight for the wedding so it was tucked away in the closet. Less than a year later and here it is getting some use finally! I haven't lost any more weight, but I'm still holding onto that 25lbs down. :)

I know what you're thinking. Yes, I did get a little sunburn despite my best efforts with sunscreen and even having Ed turn on his watch timer. 5 minutes on each side. Oh well, it was merely a flesh wound. :) 

All in all, a lovely weekend away! Now, back to my couch and ginger tea...