30 Week Charlotte Bumpdate

*This post was transferred over from my previous website.

Just a couple months to go!

This pregnancy has definitely flown by way faster than the last one!  When I was pregnant with Beverly I could tell you the week, day, hour, minute, second (slight exaggeration) I was in of pregnancy.  This time around I have to give it a bit of thought as to what week I'm in when asked.  Time flies when you have a tiny human to take care of!

Physical

Physically I'm much more comfortable than the last time!  By this point I was super swollen and incapable of doing anything without pain.  With this pregnancy I feel mostly great!  Of course there are the normal bodily discomforts, but nothing extreme.

Sciatica has been kicking me around.  Chiro, stretching, and deep tissue massages are doing their part to keep me mobile!

I have noticed a HUGE difference in how big I am between this pregnancy and the last.  With Beverly I was way bigger!  This time around I'd say I'm still carrying large.  Just not as large as with Bev.  That was ridiculous. . .  But in terms of HOW I'm carrying it's about the same.  Like with Beverly, I'm carrying as a football.  Originally I was all out front but in the past month or two I have widened quite a bit!

Swelling hasn't gotten around to me. . .  YET!  I'm absolutely expecting it.  I do get a bit swollen at the end of the day if I spend too much time on my feet, but it's always gone by morning!  Thankful for my hunk of a husband who gives me foot rubs EVERY.  SINGLE.  NIGHT.  Yes, I am incredibly blessed.  No, I don't know how I got him.

@zachandkatiedillard - "What are your pregnancy rituals?  Certain pre-natals/exercises/supplements etc"

For the second and third trimesters I only take gummy pre-natals!  A lot of the casings for capsule pre-natals can cause nausea.  Gummy pre-natals skip the casings altogether so there is less of a chance getting nauseous!

About a month or so ago I stopped going to the gym.  I could tell my body wasn't handling the early mornings well and so I decided that it was probably best to put it on hold till after the baby comes.  Instead of an early morning gym workout, I have been going on lots of long walks and doing body weight exercises at home!

Honestly I don't have that many pregnancy rituals!  I just do my best to take care of myself; focusing on what I specifically need in the moment.

@natasha_layne24 - ". . . I assume your glucose test went well?"

Thanks for asking!  Yes it did!  Well. . .  The test was not fun at all. . .  But the important thing is I passed the one hour test with flying colours which means I didn't have to go back for the three hour test and I can keep eating normally!

* MATURE EYES ONLY*

@mbdavidson27 -  "How has sex changed since being pregnant?"

Lets be honest. . .  This is what most people wanted to ask me but were probably too nervous to, haha!

Sex always changes in pregnancy!  Your whole body changes in so many ways so it's understandable that sex would change right along with it.

The amount of sex never changes for us.  However we do take it easier as the pregnancy progresses.  I've been dealing with muscle cramping quite a bit so that's been a bit of an issue when it comes to me doing any work, haha!  And of course, we are always careful to listen to my body and take it easy when needed.  Not gonna lie. . .  Sometimes I can feel like a whale but I've got a husband who thinks I'm super sexy when pregnant so I just continue to remind myself of that when I feel super huge!

@whitngracesingleton - "How do you manage body hair?"

Hahaha!  Love this!!!

With an electric razor.  If anyone comes at me with wax I will be forced to defend myself.

Gender

        @kendallscholtens - "Do you have         any gut feelings about gender?"

YES!

So far my main feeling has been BOY.  It truly is a gut feeling.  I have no reason as to why I think boy. . .  Just do!  However I did have one day where I was feeling GIRL.  And in the only two dreams I've had of our little brew, baby was a girl.  But still I am leaning more towards boy!

I think it would be fun to have a girl since this baby and Bev are so close in age.  Yet no matter what the gender is, I'll be smitten!

Mental

With Beverly I was not okay.  Mentally I wasn't doing so good.  I really hated my body and was embarrassed to go out in public most of the time.  All I did was hide in the open. While everyone was outside enjoying the sun and heat, I was inside wearing pants and dying of discomfort from how hot it was.

This time I am rocking the tank tops and shorts life!  No hiding.  No hating myself.  Simply enjoying life!

My mental state is a million times healthier this pregnancy.

@isalbellekeuning - "Have you ever struggled with PPD?"

I did with Bev.  However due to the fact that I struggled a lot when I was younger with confidence, I was expecting to have difficulty postpartum.  Thankfully the only PPD I dealt with was with my lack of confidence.  I know of plenty of other Mama's who had a much harder time than I did with many different forms of PPD.

Preparing

@itsrebekahlynn - "How are you starting to prep for baby?"

Getting ready for our little brew is seriously easy!  We already have most of the stuff a baby needs.  There are a few additional items we need/needed to get before baby comes like a second crib, double stroller, another mattress, newborn diapers, and (if baby is a boy) more clothes.

I did buy another newborn knotted hat from Jax & Lennon Co. that is suitable for a girl.  We already have a green knotted hat left over from when we had Beverly just incase she ended up being a boy.  Since we used our pink hat for Bev I wanted to get another girly one so that all our future daughters have some of their first pictures with a different pattern or coloured hat!

Birth Plan

My birth plan is the exact same as last time:

Go into labour (hopefully naturally), labour as long as I can at home, go to the hospital, try not to use drugs, use drugs if I'm way past my physical and mental limit, push a semi out of a compact parking spot, sleep.

@lilykrubin - "Are you using the same midwives as Sarah?"

Yes!  I had them with Bev and they were awesome in the delivery room!  Since I already know them all from last time it just made sense to go with them again!

@lilykrubin - "Are you planning a home birth or hospital birth?"

Sarah is definitely the hippie of the family. . .  I on the other hand will be delivering our little brew surrounded by oddly coloured walls and weirdly designed floor patterns with nurses at my beckoned call!

Names

@mrs_wilikins - "Do you have a name picked for boy or girl?"

Yes!  We have one name for each.  So once he/she is out and we know the gender, his/her name is all ready to go!

Our boy name is left over from when we had Beverly.  But once I found out I was pregnant again I had to start searching for a girl name!  I don't think the name we have chosen for a girl will surprise anyone.  However I think the middle names will!  They even surprised me when I came up with them!

I can't reveal our baby names BUT I can help shorten your "is it?" list by giving you a bunch of names we won't be using:

Boy:

• Michael

• Benjamin

• Scott

• Jordan

• Kevin

• Trevor

Girl:

• Amy

• Rebecca

• Madeline

• Samantha

• Hilary

• Emma

Cravings

Guys. . .  I want all the chocolate.  I really do. . .  Any form will do.

With my taste buds craving desserts, I have been focused on eating healthy!  Green (purple) smoothies, salads, water, and lots of fruits!  I know it's not what my body wants but it's what the baby needs.  Not going to lie though, I have been allowing myself to enjoy some sweets here and there!

I am also looking forward to a good glass of wine once we get home from the hospital with our newest addition!

Additional Questions:

@mrs_wilikins - "Did you have an ideal age gap in mind between Beverly and baby?"

I did.  We wanted (and want) to have all our kiddos close in age for multiple reasons.  A short time before we started trying for this baby I realized that if we waited till after my next expected period then the age gap may be further apart than we had wanted.  So after some prayer we decided to go for it!  Im so happy we did.  This 13 month age gap doesn't scare me at all.  I'm actually really excited to see how our lives change.

@nallykristine - "How are you doing balancing pregnancy and all it's struggles and having a little one already?"

Most of the time having a little one actually distracts me from how my body is changing.  It's almost as if I don't have time to be tired from growing a little human because I'm too busy taking care of Bev!

Sometimes my hormones aren't too great and I am extra emotional which doesn't help on the hard days.  I've had my share of break downs.  I end up laughing though because if Beverly is having a hard day and won't stop crying sometimes I start crying (because that Mom life can get hard) and Bev will stop crying and stare at me with so much confusion.  Her face is so cute and absolutely priceless so I end up laughing at her reaction to me crying and then she gets back to her crying.  It's a never ending cycle.

@isabellekeuning - "Are you going to homeschool your kids?"

That's the plan!  My siblings and I had an awesome time growing up homeschooled.  There are a million + 1 reasons why I want to homeschool my kids.  Super thankful that Elih is just as set on homeschooling as I am!

10 Weeks Left

Isn't that insane?!  In 10 (please no more than 10) weeks we will have our brand new baby earth side!

I am doing my best to take the time to enjoy the little things.  Having all my attention fall on Beverly.  Falling asleep with the feeling of our little brew dancing.  Sleeping through the night.  Having a free hand for coffee.  The ever growing baby bump.  All this and more won't be around for much longer so I'm going to enjoy it while I can!