Baby #5, Week 28

How far along: 28 weeks! THIRD TRIMESTER!
Weeks to go: 12 weeks! 

Baby is the size of: a large eggplant!

Gender Prediction: Boy

Weight gain: Not sure after Thanksgiving!

Starting to show yet?: Oh yes!

Maternity clothes: Yes! I am more comfortable wearing my maternity shirts than I am wearing regular t-shirts. I'm not sure if it's because I'm bigger this time? But tight clothes make me achy, so I'm wearing yoga pants and maternity shirts every day! I also have to wear my support band or my belly and hernia start to ache. I went a day without it and was miserable. 

Stretch marks: Just a lot of old ones!

Belly button in or out: In, but my hernia makes it look like an outie.

Sleep: So/so. We spent most of our week with family out of town and sleeping on an air mattress was okay, but my hips killed me every morning. I had to take extra time to stand and try to walk after I crawled out of the air mattress. Once we got home, I had one of the best nights of sleep I've had in a while! There is something about being in your own bed with your own smells and pillows! Heaven!

Movement: Baby Jedi moves constantly! It's really quite amazing! I had my Mom and sister, Alice, feeling baby move like crazy on Thanksgiving after all the delicious food and pie! Baby was very happy! I can tell that baby is still doing flips because I feel kicks in my ribs, sides, and down below. I'm praying that baby gets comfortable being head-down and stays that way!
Labor Signs: None yet... 

Best moment this week: Baby appointment on 11-23! Baby is doing very well and his/her heart rate was in the 130's again! (Which, of course, makes me cautiously optimistic for a boy baby!) I am measuring larger, 29 to 30 weeks, but that doesn't mean that I'll go early or that my due date is changing. If I keep measuring big, I'll probably have another ultrasound to check amniotic fluid and baby's growth. Which means I'll have to tell the ultrasound person to NOT tell me AGAIN what baby's gender is! I also enjoyed spending time with my side of the family for Thanksgiving! And the Iowa Hawkeyes defeating Nebraska to get a 12-0 record! It was awesome!

Worst moment this week: Rosalie getting terribly sick during the last day we were visiting my family. Started out with her talking to me Friday morning and I noticed her voice was all but gone. She felt warm to the touch, so I made sure she drank plenty of water and kept an eye on her. By the end of the day, she looked awful and started getting the shakes. She felt cold, but she was burning up. It was pretty scary stuff. She kept waking up during the night with coughing fits and didn't get a ton of rest. In the morning, she had more energy, but soon threw up her breakfast. This was right before we were leaving, so we said a prayer that we would be able to make it home with very few stops and that she wouldn't' get sick. We made it all the way home with one stop for gas and a potty-break! I knew that mono and bronchitis was going around the school, so I made the decision to call the clinic and take Rosie into the ER for medicine.

After waiting for almost two hours, she was diagnosed with strep throat and a fever. We went to Walmart to the pharmacy because our normal pharmacy was closed. We were told to come back in 20 minutes. Rosalie started crashing when we were looking at Christmas trees. I should have grabbed a cart, but she made the trek over to get supper from the grocery side of the store and back to the pharmacy. She laid on the bench when we got back and fell asleep instantly. Poor girl.

As of today, she won't be contagious after about 4 this afternoon(24 hours on penicillin). She has bursts of energy, but then gets extremely tired. I'm letting her color, read books, watch movies, and rest! I'm praying no one else gets this in our household, but I'm not holding my breath!
Miss anything: Sushi

Wedding rings on or off?: On during the day. Off at night.

Cravings: Kluski noodles
Aversions: Raw meat
Appetite: Hearty! Thanksgiving was wonderful, but I was sad that I couldn't eat as much as I wanted to! Especially the kluski noodles, pecan pie, and stuffing! 

Queasy or sick: Runny nose, as usual.
Workouts: Zumba and walking.

Emotionally: Better this week. But I think that with everything going on and traveling, my mind was kept moving so I wasn't dwelling on things!
Physically: Tired! I wouldn't say exhausted, but tired is true! I am feeling good all things considered! My body is having the regular aches and pains from pregnancy! Achy back, hips, ribs, etc. And HEARTBURN! I knew this would probably happen again, but man-oh-man did it show up unannounced! There have been a few times where I've almost thrown up because it was so bad. So this is what I've decided:

Looking forward to: A quiet week to set up Christmas decorations, Christmas, New Years, and then possibly a Valentine's Day baby?! That would be fun!

Baby #5, Week 27

How far along: 27 weeks
Weeks to go: 13 weeks!

Baby is the size of: a head of cauliflower! 

Gender Prediction: Boy

Weight gain: 25 lbs total

Starting to show yet?: Oh yes!

Maternity clothes: Yes! I got a new long black maternity dress that I love to wear constantly! It's so soft and comfy! I wear it around the house! But when I leave, I'm usually wearing maternity jeans and shirts! Otherwise it's the normal yoga pants and large t-shirts!

Stretch marks: Just a lot of old ones!

Belly button in or out: In. Almost flat... but I can tell my hernia is getting bigger, so at times, it looks like I have an outtie already.

Sleep: Decent. I've been especially tired, so I fall asleep really easily! I'm going through a comfortable phase in my bed and I am LOVING it!

Movement: Almost constant movement! But I'm starting to notice an awake/asleep routine! Baby Jedi is super active and then there are periods of a half hour or so where the movements are soft! I can also tell which body parts are which! I could feel Jedi's heel/foot and while it was cool, it was a little creepy! Haha!
Labor Signs: Not this week!

Best moment this week: Passing my glucose test on 11-17! And our first snow of the season on 11-20! We knew it was coming and the girls were more than excited when it came! They were very eager to play in the snow, too! I let them outside for about 45 minutes on Saturday! They had a blast!

Worst moment this week: I had a hard week this week. Without going into too much detail, Charles and I hit a rough spot and had a huge fight. We didn't speak for almost two days and it was very touch and go. But we eventually talked things out and have been doing much better since! Marriage is tough. And I know that we'll have many more rough patches as we grow together. Growing pains are hard. Our life is great, but things do get extremely hectic and difficult. We both deal with stress differently and those ways clashed really hard this past week. But the thing we learned is that we need to rely on each other and put God first. 

Miss anything: Sushi

Wedding rings on or off?: On during the day. Off at night.

Cravings: Sausage McGriddle(haven't given in...), Eggs, Fruit
Aversions: Raw meat, Sweets
Appetite: Hearty, but I'm really struggling with heart burn again! BLAH! Makes eating what I want to a chore! And if I eat too much, heartburn again! 

Queasy or sick: Still have a runny nose, but not complaining!
Workouts: Walking

Emotionally: I was a wreck this week. Which is an understatement... I really, really struggled with my emotions and my feelings. I spent a lot of time talking to some close friends and my big brother about things. It was nice to get some outside perspectives and encouragement.
Physically: Exhausted. Being emotionally drained really didn't help with the fact that I was physically drained. I am having difficultly breathing at times and my ribs hurt a lot. The stretching I've been doing has helped some, but there are days I really just want the discomfort to stop and to be done with this pregnancy and have my baby in my arms! I'm becoming more impatient, but I think it's because we don't know Baby's gender! I have to have help with tying my shoes now! Haha! I've officially reach "that" point! My husband is such a trooper, though! 

Looking forward to: My prenatal appointment tomorrow(11-23), Thanksgiving with my side of the family, and all the FOOD for Thanksgiving!

Baby #5, Week 26

How far along: 26 weeks
Weeks to go: 14 weeks! Crazy!

Baby is the size of: a scallion(14 inches)!

Gender Prediction: Boy

Weight gain: 20 lbs

Starting to show yet?: Oh yes!

Maternity clothes: Yes! LOVING maternity jeans, though I need more! I would love some maternity jeggings! Still rocking large t-shirts and yoga pants when I'm home, but I get dressed in jeans and nicer shirts whenever I leave the house! 

Stretch marks: Just a lot of old ones!

Belly button in or out: In. Pretty sure my hernia is slightly bigger this time...

Sleep: Decent! I've been especially exhausted this week. Not sure why. I'm taking a prenatal and I am testing fine with my iron. It makes falling asleep awesome, but if I wake up at night, I tend to have some insomnia. I keep my kindle charged on my night stand!

Movement: LOTS of movement! I am loving it and finding it annoying at times! Mostly when I'm trying to sleep or rest and Baby decides it's time to practice tumbling, kicking, and his/her light-saber skills! Baby Jedi, indeed! Jedi's Godmother, Jen, finally felt Baby move!
Labor Signs: None! 

Best moment this week: Sister time in Des Moines on Wednesday 11/11! Teresa, Lisa, and I went to the mall for Christmas shopping! I didn't buy anything, though! Not in the budget for me, I just went along for the sister time! It's been too long since we've had a girls day! We had a bad experience at the Outback Steakhouse, but aside from that, the day was fun! 

Worst moment this week: The weather as we were leaving Des Moines. A tornado touched down about 6 miles away from where we were. We couldn't see the road and there was a lot of hail, rain, and debris flying around. But right after that, the sun was shining and we could see a rainbow! And then later on, it started snowing... that's Iowa for you!

Miss anything: Sushi

Wedding rings on or off?: On during the day. Off at night.

Cravings: Co-Jack cheese, Pancakes with over-easy eggs on top, Pears
Aversions: Raw Meat, Sweets
Appetite: Hearty, but my stomach is getting smaller! I'm becoming more frustrated when I can't eat as much as want to!

Queasy or sick: Still having issues with a runny nose, but no complaints here!
Workouts: Zumba, Walking, and some light cardio/strength training!

Emotionally: I'm having good days and bad days. Mornings where I wake up ready to take on the day, and mornings when all I want to do is crawl back in bed and just lay there alone. I'm struggling with depression and anxiety, which is not new news, but I feel like I've been too quiet about it. My life is wonderful! I love my husband, our children, I'm beyond excited for this baby... but that doesn't mean that I'm not depressed. I'm not even sure what's going on that's making me feel this way, but I am optimistic that this will be over when Baby gets here! And if not, I'll at least be able to seek help from my doctor.
Physically: Exhausted! Which is normal! I am also reaching that point in my pregnancy where I'm having rib pain and difficulty breathing. Already! Gosh! My other pregnancies, this didn't really happen until 30+ weeks! But this is my ninth pregnancy(fifth pregnancy past 15 weeks) and my body has been through a lot so far! I am very proud of this body! My body is just becoming more tired the closer I get to my due date! Also, all the cheese I ate this week wasn't kind to me by the weekend... TMI, sorry. But for real. Constipation is no fun. 

Looking forward to: My glucose test this week(just to get it out of the way and DONE!), the PTO Carnival this Friday, my next prenatal appointment next week, and Thanksgiving!

Baby #5, Weeks 23, 24, and 25

How far along: 23 weeks - No photo... again...
Weeks to go: 17 weeks!

Baby is the size of: a large mango!

How far along: 24 weeks
Weeks to go: 16 weeks!

Baby is the size of: an ear of corn!

How far along: 25 weeks
Weeks to go: 15 weeks! Things are becoming more real, now!

Baby is the size of: a rutabaga!

Gender Prediction: Boy

Weight gain: 20 lbs total, though I haven't weighed myself since I've sworn off weighing myself for the rest of this pregnancy. I had a really bad day when I realized that I have gained so much already. I'm trying to take things in stride. I am growing a human. This is a tremendous blessing. My body has changed. My body will continue to change. I am only going to get bigger. I already feel huge... but I am embracing this and getting on with more important things! Like figuring out my birth plan!

Starting to show yet?: Oh yes!

Maternity clothes: Yes! I finally fit into my maternity clothes! All of them! Woo hoo! Some are still big, but I am so much more comfortable now! Though most days I still opt for yoga pants and large t-shirts!

Stretch marks: Just a lot of old ones!

Belly button in or out: In.

Sleep: Week 23 and 24 were absolutely terrible. Charles and I still aren't even sure what was going on with Adeline, but she was waking up every night with night terrors. It made for some very difficult nights. I was averaging 3 hours a night for almost four weeks. It was hell. We finally reached out for prayers on Facebook for our girl and that night was the first night she had slept all night. It was glorious! Since then, during week 25, she has only woken up once a night and will go back to sleep once she has her binky. Thankfully, I am functioning much better now, too! It was taking it's toll on Charles and I.

Movement: Baby Jedi is practicing his/her light-saber skills in there! All. Hours. Of. The. Day. And. Night. Which is neat! But gets a little annoying when I'm trying to sleep and then I'm woken up by Baby shifting his/her entire body!
Labor Signs: New category! I wasn't expecting to put this in here yet, but I've been having Braxton Hicks contractions off and on. It was especially bad when I was tired and dehydrated. I was sick most of the last few weeks, and I was trying to stay hydrated, but not very successfully. I've been taking things easy anyway, so my doctor isn't terribly worried that I'll go into labor early. If it gets bad enough, I'll just go in for some IV fluids and bed rest for a few days. 

Best moment this week: Week 23: We had a lot go on this week and it was hard to choose the best moment, so here they all are: Caitlin got her hair cut(finally), family fun night, our first Halloween event of the season, Rosalie's math/literacy night, and taking the girls to the Pumpkin Ranch!

Week 24: My prenatal appointment! Baby's heart-rate was in the 130's, which is the lowest any of my children's have been during an appointment! I'm not sure how much weight I'd put on the old wives tales about it, but I did excited that this baby might just be our boy! Perhaps wishful thinking?! We'll know in about 15 weeks! Charles and I went to the House Hotties party on 10/30 for the calendar release! I helped the photographer and hung out all day while she shot the photos for the calendar back in August(I think? #pregnantbrain)! I was on the cover of the calendar because it was a photo taken with a selfie stick of the entire group from that day: models, photographer, helpers, etc. A group of friends and I decided to go to the party, which was Halloween themed, as Shark Week! Since there were eight of us, I volunteered to have "survived shark week" and went as a shark attack survivor! Charles went with me as a Lifeguard! We had a lot of fun! Then, of course, was Halloween! Charles and I took the girls to my sister-in-law's house for a party before trick-or-treating! We had supper and a bunch of snacks! Then we took the girls trick-or-treating with my bestie, and Adeline's Godmother, Amanda! She offered to help us wrangle all the girls to help them be safe while crossing streets and what not! She was an amazing help!

Vampire, Red Ballerina, Witch, Majestic Unicorn

Week 25: My favorite week this pregnancy, and for a good reason! I got to watch a baby born into this world! It was absolutely amazing! I still don't even have the words to describe how incredible the experience was! But I do know this, it was intense! My friend, Julie, asked me to watch her son(again) on Tuesday while she went to her prenatal appointment. I got a message from her Monday saying that she wouldn't need me to watch him because she was being admitted that night for an early induction(39 weeks)! Her husband was out of town, so I offered her some company until he got there! It was wonderful to talk to spend time with her talking, walking, and watching Chuck on Netflix! Her husband, Clark, got there around 2 a.m. and we decided that I would go ahead and go home for the night. I told her that if she wanted, I could come back later on for support when she went on pitocin. I dropped off the girls at school and got a message that I could come back. When I got there, it was 8:45. Julie was in a lot of pain and it was hard to know what to could do to help her through her contractions. Without telling her story before she's had the chance to blog it herself, things progressed VERY quickly and she wasn't able to get the epidural she was wanting. With three amazing/painful pushes, her son was born into the world! He was a 10 lb 7 oz baby! And I can't even imagine how much pain Julie felt, but all I do know is that her body is amazing! My biggest baby has been 8 lbs 7 oz... so I can't imagine pushing out another 2 lbs worth of chubby baby! I was literally in awe at the entire process and at Julie! She did wonderful and was so, so strong! Little Jonas was born at 9:20! 35 minutes after I arrived! I cannot express how grateful I am that Julie and Clark let me in the room during their special, yet painful, moment! It wasn't pre-planned, but Julie thanked me later for being her doula! I could totally see myself helping others as a doula for a profession!

Worst moment this week: The weeks of little to no sleep. I don't even like to remember them now because I get super emotional and upset. Not at Adeline, but at myself for not reaching out sooner for prayers and support. 

Miss anything: Working out. It's been a few weeks. With the sickness, tiredness, dehydration, and BH contractions, I haven't worked out at all.

Wedding rings on or off?: On during the day. Off at night.

Cravings: Eggs(especially over-easy ones on top of pancakes!), Guacamole, Cheesecake
Aversions: Raw meat
Appetite: Normal. I'm getting to the point where I can't eat as much as I want to! Which is probably best for my weight gain, but horrible now that Thanksgiving and Christmas are coming!

Queasy or sick: Sick. Chest congestion, head cold thing.
Workouts: ONE Zumba workout and some walking. 

Emotionally: Fried. My emotions were a crazy mess during the past few weeks. I've had some major issues with anxiety. I've seen my doctor about it and expressed my concern for my postpartum self. I've had postpartum depression before. And if I get it again, I really want to seek the help I'll need before it gets really bad. With all this anxiety comes me not being able to process things the way I use to. It takes me hours, if not days, to figure out where I'm at emotionally. I've been stepping back so that I don't say or do something I'll regret later.
Physically: Exhausted! But this past week has been better! I do have more energy now, but I feel like I'm trying to catch up on sleep! I know I never will, but I would nap all day if I didn't have things to do! I'm also finding it difficult to breathe some days. I've been doing some stretches to help my ribs from getting too uncomfortable. I have 15 weeks to go... I'm hoping this is just a phase and that it will pass!

Looking forward to: My next prenatal appointment, my glucose test(just to get it out of the way and DONE!), the PTO Carnival, and Thanksgiving!