22 Weeks...PIE ON THE BRAIN!

**This is a pregnancy-related post, so please feel free to skip this post if you're not up for it. God bless.**

I’m 22 weeks!!! Take that, negativity! When I look at all of the amazing ways that God has blessed and enriched my life through this pregnancy, I can’t help but tear up a bit (hormones, yes). Last year was so, so hard, you guys. But God has truly redeemed my pain. Don’t misunderstand me, I know that God does not answer every single prayer in the exact way that we wish He would, but I do believe that He is always faithful and always good. And He continues to show me this every single day.

OKAY, enough of the heavy talk, right?! Moving right along. This week has been another crazy one, but honestly, I think I will continue to say that right through January. We have SO SO SO much to do before Baby H joins us. The list is quite daunting, and instead of getting shorter, it just gets longer! Oy! What’s a gal to do?!

Would you like a quick peek at our to-do’s? Why, of course you would! It is SOOOO interesting!

House items:

• Fix garage door opener (this mama cannot take a Chicago winter with a snow-covered car every morning!)
• Paint front porch (I am going to try to do this next weekend!)
• Level our back porch (yes, it is tilted…kewl, right?)
• Paint back porch
• Paint nursery
• Decorate/organize nursery
• Paint/make cushion for rocking chair
• Clear some space in the basement for baby-related items

Life items:

•       Become godparents to little Adelyn Grace (this weekend!)
•      Hopefully attend Homecoming at my Alma Mater (where both of my little sisters go to college!)
•      Plan/take a short babymoon (somewhere local probably, but I can’t wait!)
•      Schedule our childbirth class/tour at the hospital where I’ll be delivering
•      Attend three weddings of close friends
•      Attend three baby showers thrown for us by amazing friends/family
•     Celebrate two major holidays (T-day and Xmas) with both side of the family, and then New Year’s Eve after that
•     …HAVE A BABY!

Needless to say, I am a bit overwhelmed! But I am doing my best to “keep my cool” for the sake of my little bun. As T can attest, I LOVE my schedules…so today, I sat down, printed off a calendar of every month from now-January, and “penciled” everything in to make sure it all fit. It does, if we can only stick to the plan! I am an organizer and T is very spontaneous, so we’ll see how this goes…

On to the fun stuff!

Yes, I stuck my finger in it, hence the hole. Whatever.

I made a blueberry pie this week FROM SCRATCH, crust and all. And I must say, it was pretty gosh darn delicious. I may or may not have had three slices this week.  All for the baby, of course.

I also found a delicious mocktail at a local Indian restaurant that my dad and I went to on Friday night. I was so happy to have a drink with dinner that wasn’t water! It was a fizzy ginger basil tea, and it was seriously amazing. Man, now I’m craving it right now!

Also, shout out to my mama for her amazing artistic abilities! She is currently taking a painting class and whipping up one of these beauties every few weeks. This is her latest creation, and I think it is BEAUTIFUL (sorry mom, had to share)! She’s working on another one right now that will hang in our basement, but I’ll leave you in suspense until that one is finished! We can’t wait!

And now, onto...THE BIG BUMP!

How far along?  22 weeks, and the size of an ear of corn! Man, that’s BIG!

Clothing? Maternity on the bottom, and about half pre-preg/half-maternity on top.

Stretch marks? Nothing new!

Sleep? Getting a little tougher. The hip pain is really out of control on some nights, waking me up every few hours or so! I have to keep rotating myself, I feel like a rotisserie chicken! Not fun, and pretty painful. But I think I’m still getting my 8 hours between all of the twisting and turning.

Best moment of this week? BEING REUNITED WITH T!!! He came home from his fishing trip this week and I was so so so so so happy to see him. But then he left me AGAIN for a few days this morning, wahhh! Other than that, some SUPER COOL BABY  MOVEMENT…

Worst moment of this week? Missing T was a big bummer.

Miss anything? My husband! Other than that, I am pretty content these days.

Movement? As I alluded to above, the baby did something super cool this week…Friday night was the first time I saw peanut kick me from the OUTSIDE of my stomach! You guys, it is SOOO crazy…little pops and nudges under my skin like an alien is trying to escape! T saw it ONCE and he was so excited! I do have a high anterior placenta though, so I’m still not getting those HARD kicks that I dream of…greedy, I know.

Symptoms? Fatigue, heartburn/indigestion, random dizziness, rib pain, sore back/RLP, a BIG growing belly, Charlie horses, rotten hip pain, terrible sinuses, and my (crooked) linea nigra!

Food cravings? Now that it’s officially fall (in my mind anyhow) I am craving baked goods like nobody’s business. Mostly PIES, but anything, really. Also, per usual, French fries…always French fries. And SPICY food!

Gender? I still think girl!

Labor Signs? No siree.

Belly button in or out? Straight-up bizarre-looking…flat as a pancake.

Wedding rings on or off? On, but fingers are swelling occasionally. And so are my feet, my shoes are tight! What is this noise?!

Mood? Still super happy, suuuuper clingy, and occasionally super grumpy at a moment’s notice!

Rituals? Nighttime lullaby, holy water on the belly in the morning, holy oil on the belly at night. And staring at my ultrasound pictures/watching the videos as often as I can!!!!! Along with routine bedtime chats.

Milestones? Seeing the baby’s movements from the outside!!! Such a crazy and amazing sight! Next will hopefully be FEELING the baby from the outside, but baby is so shy whenever my hand gets near the belly! Also, I read on my Baby App this morning (I use Ovia and WebMD Pregnancy, in case anyone cares) that baby’s major organs/systems are fully functioning by now (except for the lungs producing surfactant), and baby just needs to plump up! I think that is SO AMAZING!!! I have a fully-functioning human in my belly!

Looking forward to? Feeling my FIRST REAL STRONG "OW THAT KINDA HURT" BABY KICK from the outside, getting T home AGAIN, becoming a godparent and witnessing little Adleyn’s entrance into the Church, and my 24-week appointment on Oct. 1!!! Oh, and DUH...2 FREAKIN' WEEKS UNTIL VIABILITY!!!!!!!!

This week's pregnancy-small-talk-gems (aka things other people say to pregnant ladies without thinking): Ha, no, but several great chats with a co-worker who is also pregnant. She told me that another co-worker recently confessed that before she announced to the office, she had taken a picture of her and sent it to her husband asking if he thought she was pregnant. HUH?! Some people!!!

My sweet little Savannah's first birthday would have been this Saturday. She is on my mind constantly, but especially this week. I miss her with every ounce of my being--that sort of pain never goes away, it simply becomes a part of you. I may write more about her and her birthday next week, but T and I also have a very special ritual that we partake in to remember her each year. I know she is watching over Baby H (and her younger sister Anne) from heaven right now, and that never fails to make me smile.


That’s all, lovely ladies. You remain in my prayers every single day, and I hope you have a terrific weekend.