Baby Wisely #2: Week 21

How far along? 21 weeks

Best moment this week:  Having this all be a little more real, as two of my close friends are getting ready to have their babies in a week or two! (Helped Kelly nest a bit and put together her nursery, which was a blast!)

Confusing pregnancy symptom of the week?  Feeling starving all the time, then super packed full, then not caring that you are super packed full and wanting nothing more than to eat more.

Movement: Our gal is for sure a kicker! Or dancer. Or just a happy little thing. So far as I can tell, she's kickiest when I am laying down to go to sleep, or when I'm wearing pants. Seems to like kicking my waistband!

Food cravings:  Odd things this week! Today it was a mojito... or not a mojito, but even a lemon lime soda with muddled mint... that sounds awesome. 

Anything sounding disgusting? Coffee, and oddly this week, black olives sound terrible. (Green olives on the other hand, sound super tasty.) 

Sleep?  Still can hardly stay awake after I put Norah to sleep. If I'm ever late on my weekly post, it's because I've taken a three hour nap before I hit the sack. After that I sleep super well though. No crazy dreams, no tinkle stops. Just sweet, sweet sleep. 

Clothing situation?  Happily in maternity! Tried to buy a few things for myself, ended up taking most of them back. It's hard to find good things, I say. 

I'm generally feeling: Pretty dang awesome. Other than feeling like I've done way too many crunches all the time (it feels like my abs are sore from holding my weight over this new bulge in my belly) everything is feeling pretty dang good. Well, good and sleepy that is. 

Notable sibling moments: Last week was rough, this one has been amazing. (Sensing a trend here?) Most notably-- and beware, this is my personal blog, so TMI ahoy-- potty training this week!! She's been interested since 12 months (when the doc said we should start putting her on a toilet and letting her try... which immediately led to her pooping) to a few ups and downs, to now being solidly on the end of day two, with only two wet diapers (one being after yesterday's morning dropoff at Nanas, and the next being today's nap.) I am seriously stoked. The fact that this all seems to be clicking is amazing!! Fingers crossed. It would be so nice to only have one in diapers!! (And she's just so darn happy about it all! Although I can't tell if she's happier about the tinkles, not wearing pants all day, or the candied ginger she gets as a treat after making it happen... who knows!) 

Looking forward to: Again, things slowing down! So slow down already, alright??

Baby Wisely #2: Week 20

How far along? 20 weeks

Best moment this week:  Finding out our little sprout is a GIRL!!! Norah is getting a little sister!

Confusing pregnancy symptom of the week?  My belly button feeling like it is moving separately from the rest of my tummy. It's been like this for awhile, but it's getting stronger and more hilarious.

Movement: She (aaaah! Love that I get to say 'she!') is getting more and more active during the day; she is especially kicky in the mornings and when I put Norah down at night. Already kicking sister!

Food cravings:  No cravings really other than the usual suspects! It was my 30th birthday on Friday, and I was so lucky to be spoiled with a ton of (amazingly Harry Potter themed) food-- one of the non-themed items that hit the spot was some prego-friendly (read: No eggs) cookie dough. YES. (Steak pie, potatoes and pumpkin pasties also hit the spot... YUM!) 

Anything sounding disgusting? Still anti-coffee, pro everything else

Gender prediction:  Poor little lady!! I was so thrown off with my symptoms being so different from Norah-- this has been the first lesson in, 'every person is different!' We are over the moon to be having another girl. Probably the easiest thing to put my finger on is the fact that we are already set with most things we need (other than making sure she has a few things that are her own to keep for the future), but the thing that warms our heart too is the fact that now they have each other. Sisters, as I can attest to, are amazing. My sister and I are a little over 3.5 years apart, and weren't really close until my college years (what can I say, she was pretty wonderful and I wanted to be her all my life!), but I tell you what-- no better gift in the world. It's like another part of my brain is in another person; she gets me. I am so excited for Norah and baby. 

Sleep?  Really, really all sorts of it! I am all over napping. And then being woken up by sweet Bryan. Then going to bed and sleeping even harder. Man. Tired this week!!

Clothing situation?  The tum is escaping many of my remaining non-maternity things; most notably sweatshirts and pajamas... maternity-only ahoy!

I'm generally feeling: Pretty optimistic this week! Can't help it. My brain has officially switched to multiple levels of girly decorated things, sisterhood and the fact that I feel like I am prepared for what this baby has for me! (I think if we were to have had a boy, my brain would be in the, 'holy crap, what the heck do I do with a boy...') Let's do this!!

Notable sibling moments: I feel like Norah is slowly checking off all of the ways to disagree with us all. First it was hitting; and (thankfully) that didn't hold up. Then it was kicking (and now no more). Now it's LOUD screaming. For no reason. Let's hope baby doesn't think Norah is just a ball of screams. Heck, let's hope that Norah doesn't think baby is just a ball of screams. Here's hoping this phase lasts relatively short too, so we can get closer to understanding feelings :)

Looking forward to: Trying not to look forward to anything!! The last bundle of months has shown me how fast time trucks by when you're not looking. I am enjoying every minute of soaking up Norah being our only child (out of the womb, that is), quiet nights and long bouts of sleep. (Also, trying to remember these things, because it's hard not to want to fast forward everything else so you can see another sweet, sweet face. Knowing how amazingly Norah has changed our world, Bryan and I are feeling incredibly squishy and blessed that we get to do this again. Nuts, I say!!)

Baby Wisely #2: Week 19

How far along? 19 weeks

Best moment this week:  The kicks are getting stronger, and I was finally able to feel them with my hand-- and Bryan was able to as well!

Confusing pregnancy symptom of the week?  Round ligament pain, as well as that, 'I've done a crap ton of crunches and am uncomfortably sore no matter how I move or stretch' thing. Again, aaaaaaaah yes, I remember this! (Honestly, it's been kind of cool. Makes it feel a bit more real!)

Movement: Our little kicker!

Food cravings:  Milk. Apples. And oddly, grapefruit juice.

Anything sounding disgusting? I stomached one cup of coffee this week... and decided I probably don't need any more for quite awhile.

Gender prediction:  Still boy--we will find out Friday, on my 30th birthday!

Sleep?  Not too bad. I really need to get to bed earlier though.Turns out, all uncomfortable couch naps do is make it harder to fall asleep. I feel like this is a self-perpetuating situation.

Clothing situation?  Finding out that since I've gained less weight so far than with Norah, the maternity clothes I have don't fit too well. Again, odd great problem to have! However, this still means I don't have a ton to wear... no one said your job while pregnant is to have a wide-stretching wardrobe.

I'm generally feeling: Pretty sore, but pretty dang happy.

Notable sibling moments: This has been the best week of Norah happiness in a long long while. Seriously. So many happy stories, smiles, and all-around good temperdness. She told me this week as well that she hopes baby sprout is her little sister, and that she will be sad if it's her brother. Ha! (This of course, is right before she told me her baby sprout is happy in her tummy... so clearly, she totally understands the situation's realness.)

Looking forward to: Friday!! Finding out if Norah is going to have a sister or brother on FRIDAY!!

Woodland Park and Schilter Farms

We had way too good of a weekend. Any time you can mix a great date night (Friday at the Melting Pot for $8... score!) with free tickets to the Woodland Park Zoo (thanks so much Aunt Patti!!) and visiting the pumpkin patch (Schilter Family Farms is the greatest) it's pretty much a win. Top that with an extremely happy toddler, and you have a pretty great time. 

(We didn't end up getting a ton of pictures, because it poured quite hard that day-- but we had a blast regardless, and nature granted us a big window of dryness in the middle! Enough to snap a few pictures of Norah playing with a penguin and parakeet.)

Baby Wisely #2: Week 18

How far along? 18 weeks

Best moment this week:  Finally feeling back to normal, with my extra burst of baby-positivity! Life has been grand in the Wisely household.

Confusing pregnancy symptom of the week?  Forgetting that I'm pregnant, then catching a glimpse of myself in the mirror and thinking, 'oh, my--yes, this is happening again!'

Movement: Lots of little random pokes. Feels like a tiny octopus already.

Food cravings:  Nothing fun to report. Pretty normal this week, actually! It has been quite a week of eating though; I haven't gained much weight so far so I've been focusing on eating more... and recognizing that this is quite a cool problem to have... 

Anything sounding disgusting? Still only coffee. And still sort of, the idea of Mexican food. Even though once I'm eating it, I'm all good. 

Gender prediction:  Boy!

Sleep?  Far superior to last week

Clothing situation?  As you can see, not even caring about the bagginess of maternity clothes. I feel like the rushing and tell-tale belly button sticking out gives people an out to actually ask if I'm pregnant if they don't already know.

I'm generally feeling: Super positive. All is right with the world!

Notable sibling moments: Norah has been going through quite a phase lately, which has been both the best and the worst moment we've had in awhile... seriously. Challenging, and fantastic. Wouldn't trade any of it. Our big statements include, 'XXXXXXX is not sharing!!' and 'I love you [mommy, daddy, nana, friend we're excited about seeing], sandy stories, 'thank you very much,' and NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO....

Looking forward to: things slowing down a bit! Is it really 18 weeks already?!