Baby B: 17 Weeks

As of last Saturday, we are 17 weeks pregnant with Baby B! My stomach is definitely starting to pop out.  In just 3 short weeks we will find out whether we have a he or a she growing in there!

Pregnancy Highlights:

How Far Along: 17 weeks

Size of baby: 5 inches long and 5 oz., about the size of a turnip

Weight gain: -4 (not sure how since I have a belly starting to form!)

Maternity Clothes: Maternity jeans and now some shirts

Gender: TBD December 12!

Movement: I may have possibly felt the baby this weekend, but it was such a light flutter I am not sure

Sleep: Insomnia and crazy dreams. With Ashlynn, I had scary/bad dreams, but with this baby I have dreams where I stress out about something that happened that day. Ex: Tossing and turning all night because I dreamt that the only food we had was stuffing and Ashlynn was starving

Symptoms:  I am pretty tired once night hits, have a weird appetite, and very hormonal

What I miss: Nothing! 

Cravings: Fruit, chicken, coke and candy

Best moment this week: Celebrating Thanksgiving with my sweet family

What I am looking forward to: Introducing Ashlynn to the fun of Christmas, and more importantly the reason we celebrate!

Dad and Big Sister: Mark had 4 days off of work, so we enjoyed spending quality time with him! Big Sister Ashlynn must know I am tired, because she has been sleeping better at night!

Thanksgiving 2012

Thanksgiving was so special this year. We have so much to be thankful for in sweet Ashlynn, in our marriage and in sweet Baby B on the way.  The Lord has blessed us beyond what we could ask or imagine, even through the tough times.

This year, we had a very restful Turkey Day.  Ashlynn and I spent the night at my mom's on Tuesday night to see her and my little brother. Ashlynn loved spending time with her Uncle Shane!

Breakfast at G-Ma and Gator's!

Learning to climb the stairs like a big girl!

 On Wednesday night, Mark joined us and we got the chance to do dinner at my dad's house. It was great to catch up with everyone there! 

On Thanksgiving Day, we slept in and watched tv while we cuddled and food baked in the oven.  Around lunchtime, we headed over to Mark's parent's house for food, football and fun! 

It was so nice to be able to be lazy and enjoy time spent with family! We are so blessed to have the families/in-laws that we do :)

Wearing Uncle Mike's hat!

 The rest of the long weekend was spent doing a big fat NOTHING! Friday evening we had a family dinner out and then checked out a new outlet mall.  Ashlynn was dancing to the Christmas music, and it was cracking us up!  Saturday we cleaned, and then watched football all day.  Sunday was spent fellowshipping with sweet friends.  It was just what this little family needed.  We all felt so refreshed....

Sitting by the door looking for her dada!

...except, someone REALLY missed her DADA come Monday afternoon ;)

Baby B: 16 Weeks

We are finally getting caught up on these posts! We are now 16 weeks pregnant.  It seems that this pregnancy is flying by much faster.

Pregnancy Highlights:

How Far Along: 16 weeks

Size of baby: 4.5 inches long, about the size of an avocado

Weight gain: -4

Maternity Clothes: I wear maternity jeans, not out of necessity, but because I was pregnant last winter and all of my jeans are maternity! Some tighter shirts are looking a little tighter.

Gender: TBD December 12!

Movement: I am sure the baby is moving, but I have not felt it yet

Sleep: Insomnia has kicked in a few nights this past week

Symptoms:  I go in spurts from having tons of energy to being exhausted.  I am also hungry and thirsty more frequently, and have been having some headaches. I also unfortunately got a UTI this past week.

What I miss: Nothing! 

Cravings: Fruit, salads and chicken nuggets

Best moment this week: Hearing the sweet heartbeat and having a great checkup! The heartbeat was at 138.

What I am looking forward to: Ashlynn's first Thanksgiving

Dad and Big Sister: Mark has been busy with work and is getting excited to find out the gender. Ashlynn is keeping us on our toes with her newfound and much loved mobility!

Celebrations!

My birthday was a few weeks ago, and we had a lot of fun celebrating! On my actual birthday, we watched A&M beat Alabama, and then met up with my family at Cracker Barrel (Yes, that is what I requested for my birthday dinner!)

Having fun in the "Country Store"

We also met up with my mom for a little lunch at Olive Garden the next week.

And then a fun lunch with Mark's mom and her best friend (AKA, his second mom!) Somehow I did not get a picture of either of them.

The next week, Mark gifted me by watching Baby A while I went to see the new Twilight movie with my bestie.  That night my dad babysat Ashlynn while we enjoyed a dinner out celebrating birthdays with friends!

She loves her "Daddy Time"

Fall Fun

We have had a fun and busy fall!

In October, we went to the Arboretum with friends. And we adults probably had as much fun as all of the kids! While there, a few of us took family pictures.  One of ours was used here.

"Queen for a day?"

Sweet friends

Ashlynn and her bestie Kelynn!

So happy being outside!

Last week, Ashlynn and I met up with friends to picnic and visit the new park they have built over the freeway in Dallas.  It is such a great addition to the city and we all loved it!

We also got the chance to take Ashlynn to her second Mavs game.  Mark was excited because she spent most of the game staring at the court in awe! Looks like we have a little sports lover on our hands.

Baby B: 14 Weeks

Here is a recap of weeks 14&15 of our pregnancy with Baby B!

Pregnancy Highlights:

How Far Along: 14-15 weeks

Size of baby: 3.5 inches long, about the size of a lemon to 4 inches long, about the size of an apple

Weight gain: -7 (which puts me at the same weight I was at 14 weeks with Ashlynn, even though it was a +1 then)

Maternity Clothes: I wear maternity jeans, not out of necessity, but because I was pregnant last winter and all of my jeans are maternity!

Gender: TBD mid December

Movement: Not yet

Sleep: No problems with sleep (minus having a sweet 10 month old!)

Symptoms:  I have finally gotten my energy back.  Foods do not seem to bother me as much, but I do already find myself getting full faster.  I also have occasional back and round ligament pain.

What I miss: Nothing! 

Cravings: Fruit, salads and chicken nuggets

Best moment this week: Being able to cuddle and rest with my sweet girl

What I am looking forward to: We have our next checkup next week!

Dad and Big Sister: Mark is still shocked and so excited. Poor Ashlynn is sick this week, and has no clue what is about to hit her!

Halloween 2012

I am a little behind, but wanted to record a few memories of Ashlynn's first Halloween!

Mom! What am I wearing!?

We started our fun off at Grandpa Tony's work for a little trick or treating! Ashlynn was a little unsure of her hat and shoes. Uncle Mike, Grandma Cindy and Mark all joined in on the fun.

Who needs candy when you have a slinky!

On Halloween, we went to the Arboretum with friends! We enjoyed a picnic lunch and played in the pumpkin patch.

Princess Leia, a ladybug and a ballerina

Wearing the hat= serious face and no smiles

All the fun made for one tired ladybug.

The biggest accomplishment of that day was fitting 3 adults, 3 carseats and 4 strollers in our car!

For Halloween night, we stuck close to home.  G-Ma and Gator came up and we checked out a Fall Festival down the street. We walked around for a bit, and Ashlynn checked out the petting zoo.

She loved the animals, except for the crazy looking chickens!

Since 10 month olds don't really appreciate trick or treating, we headed out to dinner instead! All in all it was a very fun, successful first Halloween for our sweet little ladybug!

Baby B: Weeks 0-13

Here is a recap of the 1st trimester of our pregnancy with Baby B! We found out we were pregnant on August 11, and had our first sonogram on September 17.  The heartbeat was 164 at the first appointment. We are so excited to be on this journey!

Pregnancy Highlights

How Far Along: 0-13 weeks

Size of baby: Microscopic to the size of a medium shrimp (About 3 inches)

Weight gain: -8

Maternity Clothes: I wear maternity jeans, not out of necessity, but because I was pregnant last winter and all of my jeans are maternity!

Gender: TBD mid December

Movement: Not yet

Sleep: No problems with sleep (minus having a sweet 10 month old!)

Symptoms:  This baby has made me much sicker than I was with Ashlynn.  I couldn't eat Mexican food or BBQ the entire first trimester. I was also much tireder (go figure!).  

What I miss: Nothing! 

Cravings: Fruit and salads

Best moments: Finding out we are pregnant, great doctor checkups, birthdays and a fun trip to San Antonio!

What I am looking forward to: Seeing and feeling Baby B grow

Dad and Big Sister: Mark is still shocked and so excited. Ashlynn has no idea what is about to hit her!

Happy 10 Months!

 Baby A,

You are 10 months old! In 2 short months you will be 1 year old. This first year of your life is flying by.  This month you have become very brave and independent!

We went to the doctor this week and you weighed 22 lbs!  You eat a 9 oz. bottle every 4-5 hours and eat 3 meals a day.  You prefer finger food to baby food, and are not scared to eat anything. You are still not the best sleeper, and wake up a few times throughout the night. You now have 5 teeth and a 6th is fixing to come through.

You are wearing some 12 month, but mostly 18 month clothes (and 24 month in leggings).  We have been trying to get you used to wearing shoes but you are not sure about them still.  Bows have also had to cease because you pull them off and start trying to pull them apart.

We have started to try and baby-proof the house.  You seem to be smarter than many of the items we have purchased.  

You learned to crawl this month! Shortly after, you started pulling up on everything and anyone.  You can also walk back an forth on furniture. A few times, you have been brave enough to let go and stand on your own, or let go and reach out for us.

You are a mini-me of your daddy! You have his personality, his sense of humor, his love for people and his facial expressions. It is pretty funny :)  You still look mostly like him, but you have your mama's eyes. Your vocabulary is growing. You now say Mama, Dada, "Hey!", more/"mo!"(on occasion) and you have tried to say no and up. You can also sign "more"

In the past month, you have endured your first stomach bug and your first ear infection.  It was tough watching you be sick and not being able to do much about it.

You have done quite a few fun things this month,

First Mav's game

First Halloween

UNT Homecoming Football game

Sweet girl, your smile and joy continue to grow.  You love people and you especially love your mama and daddy! It is such a joy to watch you learn and experience new things.  We are soaking up these baby days while they last!

We love you,

Mommy and Daddy

Howdy Folks!

It has become a tradition to go to the State Fair each year for Mark's birthday with friends. This year was Ashlynn's first year to partake in the festivities.  Sadly, she did not get to meet Bix Tex, as he faced a tragic demise the day before.

She has become a little poser whenever she sees a camera!

Basically our only reason for going to the fair each year is for the food. We had a little bit of everything fried: fried samoa cookies, fried macaroni sliders, fried jambalaya, fried pizza, fried cookie dough, fried grilled cheese, and of course a delicious corny dog!

Eating fried samoa cookies

Besides food, we love to check out the car buildings. A)Because our husband's like to and B)It is air conditioned

Future Nascar Driver?

Miss Priss had no trouble taking a nap with all that was going on.  We took that opportunity to check out the Bird Show.

About halfway through (after football, of course!) a few friends met up with us.

Ashlynn loves Amy! (and vice versa I am pretty sure!)

Once it gets dark, we always head home.  The Midway turns into a chaotic mess at that point. On our way out, we happened upon a parade.  Ashlynn loved the floats and the music.

"Hey Dad! I want that thing!"

Sweet family picture

 Hopefully next year Ashlynn will get to see Big Tex, new and improved, and check out the farm animals (we ran out of time). Although she got a taste of a corn dog this year, I am sure she will be wanting more of our fried food too!