thirty-eight....a little late

Well, this will be my last weekly/biweekly pregnancy update. 

It feels so surreal to type that. 

You spend your whole pregnancy counting down to a certain date...the days waiting on your little babe pass slowly, but the weeks fly by and then before you know it you get to the point where the milk in your fridge expires after your due date and suddenly everything seems so real.  

Now, here I am at just over 38 weeks. I feel ready. I feel like we're as prepared as we're going to be for baby #2 to enter our world. I feel like I've soaked up as much time as I can enjoying our simple life as a family of three {imagine that, calling life with a toddler simple, ha!}. 

I just want to hold my baby boy. And smell him. And kiss his sweet head. And see him in his daddy's arms. And see he and big brother meet for the first time. 

2 full days to go. Let's do this. 

Pregnancy: 38 weeks 

 

How big is baby?: Belly is still measuring 2 weeks "behind". We're thinking 6.5 to 7 lb range.

Heartbeat: 168 bpm at my LAST prenatal appointment Thursday.

Sleep: This past week it has not been great. A combo of my mind that won't quit + my bladder + an aching back + heartburn, does not for a good nights sleep make. Still, I know it's amazing compared to what we're in for in the coming weeks :)

Feeling: The past few weeks I've been feeling pretty great...the past couple of days not so much. I don't know if its pregnancy related or if I caught a little bug, but I've not been feeling too hot. 

Movement: It's slowed a little again, but he's still an active guy.

 

Belly: He's still sitting pretty low. Like I said above, it is smaller than I was with Morgan and Im still measuring 2 weeks "behind". We're just expecting a smaller little guy this time around {trust me, it's not for lack of eating on my part ;) }.

Countdown to baby: 2 days. TWO.

xoxo,

Ashley

project 365: days 8 - 14 of loveliness

day 8: tiny little baby boots 

 

day 9: he loves the chalkboard almost as much as his mama. 

almost.

day 10: practicing his big bro skills

 

day 11: bath time + story time

 

 day 12: cuddling on the couch. look at that sweet profile!

 day 13: we tried.

day 14: he loves to lounge in the tub these days.

also, this might be one of my new favorite pics.

days 1-7 here

xoxo,

Ashley

thirty-seven

Pregnancy: 37 weeks

How big is baby?: Well, I'm measuring small and weight gain has halted over the past month, so my OB is guessing that this little guy is going to be a smaller baby than Morgan. She's guessing between 6.5 and 7 lbs.

Heartbeat: 158 bpm today.

Sleep: I'm not complaining. I've been savoring these last few weeks of uninterrupted sleep because I know night time's about to get hoppin' up in here soon!

Feeling: Good. Just ready. So. Ready.

Movement: He's an active little guy still. The other day I was kicked back on the couch with a small bowl of oreos sitting on my belly when the bowl started to bounce up in down from all his activity in there. It was a hilarious moment. There were some serious pregnancy cliche's going on there. I even took video of it on my cellphone, but think that might be too weird to share?

 

Belly: He's still sitting pretty low. Like I said above, it hasn't gotten much bigger over the past few weeks. I'm thinking he's ready to come out and meet the world! :)

Countdown to baby: 12 days. We're not talking weeks anymore people. Days.

xoxo,

Ashley

boxes

Our new infant car seat arrived yesterday {we had to order a new one due to poor planning in storage on our part}, and I was totally reminded of a Jerry Seinfeld monologue when I later found myself examining the box it came in and thinking to myself how perfect it will be for packing.

Here's the quote if you're looking for a good laugh {and a link to the video clip below}: 


Jerry: When You're moving your whole world becomes boxes. That's all you think about is boxes. Boxes, where are there boxes? You just wander down the street going in and out of stores. Are there boxes here? Have you seen any boxes? I mean it's all you think about. You can't even talk to people because you can't concentrate. Shut up I'm looking for boxes. Just after a while you become like really into it you can smell them. You walk into a store. There's boxes here. Don't tell me you don't have boxes. Dammit, I can SMELL them. I'm like I'm obsessed. I love the smell of cardboard in the morning. You could be at a funeral. Everyone's mourning crying around, and your looking at the casket. That's a nice box Does anyone know where that guy got that box? When he's done with it do you think I could get that? it's got some nice handles on it. And that's what death is really. It's the last big move of your life. The hearse is like the van. The pale bearers are your close friends the only ones you could ask to help you with a big move like that. and the casket is that great perfect box you've been waiting for your whole life The only problem is, once you find it you're in it. 

Video

xoxo,

Ashley

toes

This one time when I was 36 weeks pregnant I decided it would be a good idea to paint my toes.

It actually wasn't as hard as one would expect thanks to some innovation on my part that may or may not have included the use of an exercise ball. 

Regardless, I'm still counting it as exercise. 

I mean I did use my exercise ball and all.

xoxo,

Ashley

project 365: days 1-7 of loveliness

day 1: enjoying hydration via mason jar thanks to my cuppow

day 2: morgan took a nearly 4 (yes FOUR) hour nap. 

we snuck in to check on him and found him snuggled up like this with his little feet poking out.

day 3: yogurt + honey + my beautiful mint green anthro bowl

day 4: he loves playing in the water. 

i love sitting in my old school desk and watching.

day 5: my mom bought little man these baby levi's. 

i cannot wait to see his little tush in these!

day 6: we went on a mini road trip with grandma. 

morgan got to try his first krispy kreme.

day 7: we collaborated on a picture this morning. 

morgan thought my cowboy needed a little more blue in his life.

xoxo,

Ashley

This past week has been wonderful. I had the week off so it was spent filled with lots of quality time with my boys and lots of baby prep. Luckily my nesting came back full force because a few weeks ago when my energy and motivation were at an all time low, I feared it wouldn't happen. Everything is ready for our little mans arrival, and I've moved on to cleaning and packing. Oh yea did I forget to mention we're moving just a few short weeks after little mans arrival? Yep, moving with a newborn, that's how we do it. So now we're slowing becoming surrounded by boxes and blank walls as I want to try to get as much done before he gets here because then I'll be recovering from my c-section and not able to move around quite the same for a few weeks {so not looking forward to recovery}.

We've been soaking up the short time we have left before our family of three becomes a family of four, and I think we've been enjoying it to it's fullest. In the morning it's just me and Morgan cuddled up on the couch watching morning cartoons. Morgan has been extra cuddly this past week - it's almost like he senses big change is coming too and he wants to soak up all the alone time he can with us too.  I've also been making it a point to be the one to give Morgan his bath {which is usually Frank's thing} and have really been enjoying that quiet time just me and him. Bath time is such a special time, perfect for reflection on my first born and imagining life with two little boys...there's usually a tear or two shed, yes. The evenings spent with Frank and Morgan have been wonderful too. There's been lots of cuddle time on the couch, and we've taken to putting Morgan to bed together...best 5 minutes of the day - he can be such a silly little thing when it's time to turn in. 

Every once in a while that feeling I wrote about here creeps in, but overall, I think we've lived these last few weeks to their fullest and really have enjoyed being just the three of us. Now, I just feel ready. Ready to see what my little man looks like, ready to smell him, ready to see him and Morgan together, ready to try breastfeeding again, ready to see what his temperament will be and how he'll compare to Morgan when he was a wee one. So much excitement and anticipation built up in my heart, it just might burst!

xoxo,

Ashley