32 Week Belly Update

                                                                Belly Update Week 32!

                                                        32 weeks pregnant with Addison

                                                             32 weeks pregnant with Avery

How far along: 32 Weeks 2 days
Baby size: approx. 19 inches long and 4-4.5lbs About the weight of a honeydew melon!
Total weight gain: 31.5lbs which isn't too bad.
Belly button: Still an innie
Stretch marks: Not a one!
Maternity clothes: You bet! and even those that I wore at this point with Addison are getting pretty snug!
Sleep: Starting to lose more sleep lately, I am starting to get up to pee in the night and cannot get comfortable when I come back to bed. Ryan is convinced I am moving around so much just to have some company being awake. At least Addison is finally sleeping through the night.
Symptoms: I am getting to that "whale" stage... I feel enormous, and am shocked when I see my picture and realize I am not as huge as I feel. I can officially not zip my snowboarding jacket or reach down to get my boots on anymore. I am also starting to swell in my legs. It started this time with Addie too, so I was expecting it, but it's not that bad yet. Most of the time Ryan doesn't see it when I do and it's not every day. I am also absolutely wiped out by 6pm. I've been going to bed not long after Addison lately.
Aversions/Cravings: Aversion to greasy food, and cravings for anything sweet and salads. I cannot get enough Greek salad lately (don't worry, I found pasteurized feta!)
Best moment of the week: Getting all of Avery's clothes ironed and hung up (8 hours of ironing and that's only the 0-6 month stuff!) All the little ruffles and lace look pretty and seeing those tiny little clothes hung in her closet makes me so excited. Her nursery is just starting to get put together.
What I miss: Feeling energetic and being able to accomplish what I want. I get so frustrated that there are so many things I want to do, but I either don't have the energy to do them, or it takes me forever when I do get to something.
What I am looking forward to: My OB appt on Tuesday! I will be getting the c-section date for Miss Avery and I am soo excited to find out when this little princess's birthday will be and make plans for Addison while we are in the hospital.
Nursery Progress: The paint is on the walls, the closet is full of washed and ironed ruffly, tiny little clothes. We picked out everything else, and are slowly starting to buy what we can when we can. We have realized we had much more disposable income when I was pregnant with Addison!
Best thing Avery did this week: Stuck out her little foot so clearly that I could see the little tiny foot outline and rub it. SOOO cool!

Oh, and one more thing that was awesome this week. My Dad took it upon himself to be the first to gift Avery with something special. By this time with Addison, we had received so many wonderful gifts for her. We really don`t need a lot this time, and it hasn`t been that long since we had Addison, so Avery hasn`t gotten anything gift wise. I thought it was so sweet that my Dad went out by himself and bought her a travel sleep sheep (that Addison has completely claimed..) and the cutest little onesie and matching hat. Thanks Dad!! I can`t wait to see Avery in that little outfit.

So much to do, so little time!

I can hardly believe it, but our SECOND baby girl is almost here!! About 8 weeks left to go, and we are soo not prepared! By this point with Addison, we had pretty much everything finished in the nursery and stocked up. So far, all we've done for Avery is get her room painted. We still have A LOT to do, and while Addison is visiting family in New Brunswick this week with my parents, we are hoping to get a lot of our checklist completed.

Here's the list of things we need to get finished before baby girl arrives:

• Touch up the ceiling paint in Avery's room 
• Finish staining and sealing our staircase (this should have been done months ago, but I would'nt let Ryan do it with Addie in the house)
• Iron all the baby clothes that I have washed from storage, and hang in the closet
• Write birth plan
• Finish the mobile I am making
• Make the bookcase I want to make
• Make plans for Addison during my c-section
• Buy and set up crib and dresser
• wash all the baby blankets and put away
• Inspect breast pump and buy replacement tubing ect.
• Set up baby swing, bouncey seat and get carseat out of storage
• Do another hospital tour (because the hospital has a new labour/delivery wing and I want to check it out before I go in to deliver
• Call insurance to confirm private room coverage
• Organize our hall closet and bedroom closet (just because I need to capitalize on these nesting instincts)
• Fill my freezer with freezer meals!! (I was sooo sorry I didn't do that when I had Addison!)
• Renew Addison's health card. So much easier to do toting ONE baby down to the office instead of TWO!

And since this is my running list to go by, I am sure there will be more added as we go along. 

But then there is also the list of things we need to BUY for Avery. We really haven't bought anything for her yet. This is what we still need"

• Crib/crib mattress
• Dresser
• Curtains/Blinds
• Crib bedding
• Cloth diapers (we need to add some smaller fitting ones to our stash)
• Swaddle blankets
• Baby book
• Glass bottles
• Double stroller
• More newborn clothes (since I know she's going to be another little peanut like her sister)
• Co-sleeper
• Change pad cover
• Bottle warmer (something I wished I had bought with Addison)
• Diaper bag (my old one is falling apart!)
• Bottle drying rack (love the Boon grass ones!)
• Ear thermometer
• Clothes hamper
• Night table and lamp (two more things I am still missing for Addison's room)
• Newborn size pacifiers
• Newborn diapers for the hospital

Quite the list eh? ya... So far all I've bought the poor girl are 3 cloth diapers, a newborn sleeper, and some hangers. But, I am almost done the mobile I've been making her, and am hoping to get the sling book shelves  made next weekend. 

Y3W: My Sick Baby

Is there anything sadder than a sick baby? yep. YOUR sick baby. It breaks my heart that my girl isn't feeling well right now, and isn't her regular happy, energetic self. Poor baby. She's been all snuggled up on the couch asking for "snuggle"(s) for the past two days now. The only change is when the Tempra kicks in and she has a half hour run of forgetting she's sick. Then comes the crash and we're back to sick baby.

Speaking of Tempra, this stuff is amazing. We've tried Advil and Tylenol, and they both make Addie gag. The banana Tempra tastes more like juice and Addie slurps it right up. The only problem seems to be that I can't find the banana flavour anymore. I have been to numerous stores and can only find cherry (which she refuses entirely, and I cannot even bribe her with chocolate to take it).

Does anyone know if they stopped making the banana flavour?

29 Week Belly Update

                                                  Here is my 30 week picture with Addison

                                                        And 29 weeks 1 day with Avery

I'm not seeing much difference either. Good, I was still relatively small at this point with Addie and hadn't gotten fat and swollen yet. Not there with Avery yet either thank God!

How far along: 29 weeks 1 day
Baby size: Butternut squash 15-17 inches long and 2.5-3lbs
Total weight gain: 29lbs according to my scale.. ouch!! My Dr. appt for last week got bumped out to the 22nd, so we'll see what their scale says then.
Belly button: still an innie
Stretch marks: none yet!
Maternity clothes: definitely, and starting to get a little tight in the size small's!
Sleep: sleeping ok. I do sleep fairly well at night, but once I've been up for an hour and a half, I find myself exhausted again.. oh the joys of third tri.
Symptoms: aside from being exhausted constantly, the baby brain is really getting to me these days. I am forgetting everything that I don't write down, and if I forget to make a list.. forget about it. Other than that, nothing I can really complain about.
Aversions/cravings: no oatmeal, craving sweets a lot now
Best moment of the week: Avery is MUCH more energetic than Addie was when she was an inside baby. Avery moves all the time, and I love feeling her poke her feet out one side, and her head out the other side of my belly. Oh ya, she is definitely breech again, so hello c-section #2.
What I miss: Being able to get my boots on and off without all the huffing and puffing. Is it flip flop season yet?
What I am looking forward to: My next Dr. Appt. Feb 22nd! It is my first appt with my OB this round, and I am eager to ask him if we can go ahead and book the c-section date now that we know for sure I will need one.
Nursery Progress: We have painted the nursery. It is a very pale pink. I would post a pic now, but there really isnt much to see. I am working on a mobile for her that will match her bedding. It has owls, trees, stars and a moon hanging from ribbons. I just started it last weekend and it is turning out really cute so far. As soon as I am done that, I am going to make her a bookcase and do her name letters. One project at a time. We still don't have furniture for her yet, but we are saving, and hopefully we will have it before she is born. I'll post pics as I get the projects done. Getting home at six, then making Addie dinner, then us dinner, then starting the bath/bed routine plus my exhaustion limits my time to work on things. I have the best luck when Addie is either at her grandparents on Thursday nights, or during her nap on the weekends.

Potty Training Progress Report

Do you remember back in July, when I posted this blog post about potty training?

I thought I would give you an update on how that all went.

Well we started off REALLY well. I mean she got the hang of it really quickly, as in was having only one to two accidents per day after day 3, and was excited about getting all the applause and attention from everyone. She was doing so well in fact, that everyone thought she was going to be fully trained in a matter of weeks.

 What we didn't account for, was that we started potty training during her daycare's summer vacation, when Addison was with her grandparents for two weeks straight. Once I brought her back to daycare, her daycare provider refused to commit to training and so we came to the compromise of letting her wear "pull up's" at daycare. I was super hesitant about the idea, but I didn't really have much choice, unless I wanted to find another daycare (which I didn't considering that this daycare is amazing otherwise) I would have to deal.

Guess what. Picking up Addie at 6pm and trying to train for an hour before bed (when she also has to eat dinner and is at her crankiest) and trying to catch the one morning pee before daycare didn't go well. It went exactly as I assumed it would. Addison saw the pull ups as diapers (cus that's exactly what they are) and her daycare provider pretty much stopped even trying, so Ryan and I playing catch up just wasn't working. We stopped trying in October and relented that we would have to wait to try again. We tried in the morning, and we offered and asked  her if she wanted to go to the potty, but we left her in the pull up's.

Towards the end of Novemeber, Addison really started to pick up an interest in the potty again. And since she was showing interest on her own, we started putting her in underwear at home, and even taking her out in underwear to the grocery store and other shorter errands. By the middle of December, she wasn't having any pee accidents at all anymore at home or at Grandma's, and we knew she was totally ready to train. So I told the daycare provider that she was taking a week off at Christmas, and would be returning in underwear. I didn't give an option, and the daycare provider didn't argue. Perfect.

So on December 27th, we took away the bottle (it was time for that to go anyway) and started full time potty training. Addie has done wonderfully. She held pee right away, and would hold it until we took her (which was about once an hour) but she didn't start asking to go until this week.

This week, she has even been getting up in the night to ask to go to the potty.

She is still working on poop though. She doesn't like going in her underwear and comes immediately when she has an accident, she knows poop goes in the potty, however, she is having trouble with the timing. She will come tell me she has to poop either immediately before she goes (as in she is going as I am running her to the potty) or she tells me immediately after. I have just upped her motivation by giving her chocolates for poop in the potty. It would be much easier if she was a really regular kid, but she poops at completely random times so it's hard for me to catch.

We are still on the journey, but I am thrilled with the progress we've had so far. The trick was definitely taking away the pull up's. If she is in a diaper, she will pee in it every time. She does not like wet underwear though. We took her to the mall for two hours last Saturday morning and she was out for a total of 3 hours and stayed dry, then in the afternoon, took her to a birthday party for 4 hours and went twice at the party and came home dry. I am so proud of my girl, she is officially "pee trained". The poop training will follow.

At what age did you potty train? How'd it go? Was it a quick weekend project, or a lengthier process like ours? Any tips and tricks?

Baby Ta has a name!

Guess who can't keep a secret? haha apparently Ryan! After getting some not so good feedback on our short list of baby names from family, Ryan and I decided not to share Baby Ta's name until she was born. Turns out however, that Daddy couldn't help himself and not only did he tell my parents her name, but also his parents. I am not upset though, I think it's really sweet that he is so excited about his little girl's arrival that he can't help himself from talking about her. So, now that the cat is out of the bag, we may as well tell the world!

World, we will be welcoming our daughter Avery in April. 

Now that that's settled, we are still working on a middle name for this little princess. We haven't officially decided yet because we are stuck on three different ideas. Here's what we're thinking:

1. Avery's middle name completely unique to her. Her daddy picked Reese, and I do love it. 

2. Avery's middle name the same as mama's: Leigh

3. Avery and Addison's middle names both have a biblical meaning. Addison's middle name is Grace, not just because it is pretty, but as a reminder of God's grace. We thought it would be nice for the sisters to both have middle names that are reminders of the fruits of God's love. Idea's for Avery's middle name are: Joy, Hope, and Faith. 

We'd love your opinions, follow the link to vote!

Vote on Avery's middle name

Baby Update Week 24

This pregnancy is going by so much faster than my first. I can hardly believe it's already the middle of January and our baby girl will be here in April.

Here's a little update:

                                                      23 weeks pregnant with Addison

                                                        23 weeks pregnant with Baby Ta

Here's last week's belly picture. I don't see that much of a difference in the belly, but I do notice a difference elsewhere. I have gained more weight faster this time around, and I am seeing it in my hips, arms and face.

How far along: 24 weeks 6 days
Baby's size: An eggplant approx 14 inches, 1.5-2lbs
Total weight gain: 22lbs so far (19-20 is recommended by week 25)
Belly button :still an innie. It never popped with Addie, I don't expect it to this time either
Stretchmarks: None yet!! None with Addison, let's hope Baby Ta is easy on me too!
Maternity clothes: definitely the only thing that fits me now. And I've moved more into the small's than the extra small's in my mat wardrobe already (only a couple weeks earlier than with Addie)
Sex: Baby girl!
Movement: Baby Ta is more active than Addie was, but still not incredibly active. She kicks more, and usually wakes up around lunch time and 9pm. I LOVE feeling her movements. It is definitely one of my favorite things, and makes me smile every time I feel her.
Sleep: At this point with Addison I wasn't sleeping much at all, but this time I am so exhausted working, and running around after Addie that I am sleeping very well.
Symptoms: Nothing too bad actually. Tired, but usually the nesting instict takes over. My house is still clean, the laundry is still done, and work on the nursery has been started! My hips and lower back have started to ache by the end of the day, but it's in part because I am doing too much, and know it.
Aversions/cravings: Absolutely nothing either way
Best moment of the week: Baby Ta reached her first milestone. Her week of viability. If she was to be born at this point, she would have a 50% chance of being ok. Which is amazing considering last week it was around 0!! Every week above this week the percentage increases substantially.
What I miss: Being able to play more actively with Addison. I have a hard time bending forward already, and so playing at her level and letting her bounce on my belly are hindering our play time.
What I am looking forward to: My next Dr. Appointment on Friday. I am really eager to find out if she is still head down!!