30 weeks!!

Holy Crap we are into our 30's! I can not believe how fast time has gone. I feel like it was just yesterday we were trying to determine if the faint line meant we were pregnant or not. but I guess I have blocked out a lot of the first trimester:) anyway- around 10 more weeks to go! 

size: this week she is 18 inches long and 3.2 lbs. measuring as big as a head of lettuce

what's going on with Ainsley: her brain development is in overtime. she can sense with all five of her senses now. her eyesight is still developing and will continue to even after she is born. She is surrounded by a pint and a half of amniotic fluid right now.
she moves around like crazy in there and amazes me how strong her movements are.
We know from our ultrasound that she loves my placenta. her little face and hands are squished right up against it. look at how close she is

Philip says the placenta is her best friend in there:) Her hand is always on or around her face. it's the cutest little hand:)

 

what's going on with me: nausea and dry heaving is back. I have been pretty sick starting around 3 am and waking up to puke some mornings. luckily it seems to be just mornings for now.
I have been super tired lately, but I think a lot has to do with working 12 hour shifts. Being on your feet running for 12 hours is enough to wear anyone out. So add to that carrying a child around in your belly-- makes for long days and one tired woman (with an aching back and sore feet!)
My wedding ring still fits fine, which i am very happy about.
I have officially entered the 'freak out phase'. Philip and I will go out to lunch or make spur of the moment plans and I am thinking in the back of my head 'this won't be happening for much longer'. or I will sit down in front of the Christmas tree to read and be thinking about how little I will get to read once Ainsley comes. and while I KNOW it will be all be so worth it and I wouldnt trade her for anything in the world, I am still freaking out about how much our lives are going to change. in a good way, I know. but still. Sometimes I dont do well with change:)

4D: take two on the 4D ultrasound was much better. I drank my Diet Mt Dew, ate my Snickers and was hoping to get Ainsley all kinds of riled up. After all the caffeine and sugar she still wanted to stay snuggled in my placenta. she did move around and let us see her face though. which we loved. Philip thinks she looks like me, but I really can't make that call just yet. she is head down, which is the position you want them in for delivery. all we know is she is the cutest baby we have ever seen and we can't wait to see and hold her in person. :) not that we are biased or anything.
We got a DVD of the full 20 minute session and have watched it (and shown it off) several times. it is so crazy to see her moving around and living in there:)

cravings: spiced tea. friendship bread. York Peppermint Patties. 

Christmas Lights!!!

Monday Mom and Dad came up to help us with our lights. Dad has his super tall phone company ladder and muscles:) both of which we needed. 

Mom and I made spiced tea while the boys were outside. Then we went out to help untangle lights.

Jackson helped too

using their 'McGyver sticks' to hang the lights 

The finished product makes me soo happy:) other than the tree, the outside lights are my favorite thing about Christmas:) 

oh, and Buddy has returned! This is how he appropriately spent his first morning back (as did I) 

officially Christmas Season!!!

You know how sometimes you just have one of those days where you realize how truly blessed you are. when you step back and thank God for your husband. for your pets. for the unborn baby in your belly. for everything He has blessed you with. because there is just so much. yesterday was one of those days for me. 

I knew it was going to be a good day. We had our 4D ultrasound scheduled and we were putting up our Christmas tree. I mean, what more could this girl possibly want:) 

I will talk more about the 4D in the weekly pregnancy post, but look at how cute our baby girl is. 

 Clearly, that put us both on cloud 9 for the rest of the day. well, let's be honest, we are still floating:) 

We came home from Baby Belly and Philip wanted to play in the leaves with Jackson. It was so funny to watch them. Philip hid in a pile of leaves and Jackson would eventually find him. 

look at his crazy eyes! 

It was a lot of fun. until Philip lost his wedding ring in the pile of leaves. It was just like 2 winters ago when he lost his ring in the snow at The Burtons. So we spent the next 20 minutes sifting through the leaves looking for his ring. We decided maybe for Christmas he would be getting a metal detector:) Luckily, he found it:)

We went and grabbed some sushi (cucumber roll only for this preggo), stopped and got our annual bottle of champagne (add sparkling non alcoholic wine this year) and came home to put up our tree(s)!

hubs drank the non alcohol with me. it wasn't that bad! 

hanging the cork on the tree. its an annual tradition:)

Once the tree was complete and the stockings were hung, we (philip) built a fire and we watched Home Alone:)

 

we FINALLY got jackson to come on the floor with us. he was so scared of the fire!! 

It was the perfect start to our Christmas Season. And it's not even December yet! :)

Thanksgiving 2012

This year, I didn't have to work Thanksgiving for the first time in 4 (maybe 5) years. I usually always have to work this holiday, but after going to the ER pool, I work fewer holidays. So, YAY! for more family time!!

Philip had to work that night, but sacrificed sleep to eat some fabulously yummy food:) We all went to my parents house. It was the 6 of us, Aunt Ellen, Grandma, Rachel's parents &sister, and Philip's mom &brother. 

Mom made the turkey, stuffing, homemade rolls and an appetizer and everyone else contributed sides, appetizers or desserts. 

I got up early that morning and made loaded mashed potatoes and caramel apple/Snickers dessert. 

both turned out yummy and even Philip liked the dessert (he doesn't usually like sweets)

It was so nice having everyone there and being able to spend time together. Poor Joy and Brian had to listen to many Wilhoite stories. it's always fun to have a new audience:) We were also able to celebrate Joy's birthday. 

The weather was beautiful and Dad and I agreed that Jackson should have been in attendance. he would have loved the sun and the farm. So the next day I went back to Gtown and took Jax. He got to play on the farm when Matt came in from hunting. Mom made hot browns from left over turkey and they were delicious. We aren't crazy enough to go Black Friday shopping. Mom, Aunt Annie and Auntie Jo and I tried that one year and I wanted to curl into a ball and cry. too many people and too long of lines:) So Mom and I ventured out today and went shopping. It wasn't crowded and I got lots done. 

Philip has worked the past 3 nights, so tomorrow is when the Overall Christmas Tree goes up! I am so excited:) 

29 weeks

last week in our twenties! 

shirt says 'clearly not a secret' haha- thanks erin! 

size: 17 inches, 3.1 pounds. this week she is as big as a butternut squash :)

What's going on with Baby A:  Her body hasn't put on a lot of weight this week, but her brain has! Her brain is getting grooves and indentations as she grows brain tissue. I had read that her brain is in a 'growth spurt' and it listed foods that were rich in 'brain food'. almost all of them being seafood. soo, wednesday night we went to dinner with some friends, and I sampled crab! *see how much I love this child already??* 

Her bone marrow has also started producing red blood cells, making it much easier for her to survive on her own. 

A lot of her lanugo (the soft hair she has been covered in) is starting to disappear because her fat and brain are taking over her body temperature regulation. she is already growing so fast!! :) 

we got to see her little face at the 4D on sunday, but little stinker wouldn't wake up and we had to reschedule our ultrasound for this sunday. Her face was nestled in my placenta. she did turn her head, yawn, then turn her head back:) philip is so good at looking at ultrasounds. it is hard for me to see what we are looking at sometimes. philip said she looks like me, but I really couldn't tell. anyway, i wasn't too disappointed we had to reschedule because now we get to see her again in 3 days! 

what's going on with me: feelin' the burn. heart burn has taken over in a major way. i have added one more pillow trying to prop myself up so I can get some sleep. 

I feel like she has taken over my insides, making it hard for me to breathe. hard to eat. hard to sleep. hello third trimester, right?!:) 

I am still nauseated in the morning, but had a puke-free week this week! 

I have had a few other ailments that have surfaced this week, but I will spare you the details;) 

I haven't started to swell. 

my usual walk is taking me 5-10 minutes longer than it usually does:) philip told me at the mall the other day that i am 'slowing down'. 

I go back to the doctor Monday, and then I think we might start the every 2 week appointments. yikes! 

28/ third tri!

Hello third trimester! 

We are so happy we have made it this far and that is has been a healthy pregnancy for both me and for Ainsley. But at the same time we are both sort of freaking out a little bit. She is going to be here before we know it! 

I came home from work Sunday night and Philip had surprised me and gone and picked up the nursery furniture! Him and his brother Brian lugged it all up the stairs and everything but the crib and the hutch were in there! We sat in the glider together and talked about how crazy it is that in less than 3 months we will be parents. We are soo excited:) 

*pics of nursery will come once i get it all set up* 

size: this week she 17 inches and 2.9 pounds. the size of a small cabbage (ew). 

what's going on with Ainsley:  Her wrinkled skin is starting to smooth out as fat is starting to form under her skin. Her lungs are continuing to mature, preparing them to function on their own soon. She is starting to kick around like crazy and sometimes i look around to see if anyone could see my stomach  moving around from her movements:) 

She is starting to get 'in position' and is supposedly moving head and face down to prepare for birth. 

My brother and his wife Rachel got me a gift certificate for my birthday and I have been saving it. We decided to use it for a 4D ultrasound we are getting on Sunday. We can't wait to see little bean and how much she has grown :) 

what's going on with me: Most people tell me how tired they were in their first trimester and I tell them I didn't really have time to experience that. I was too busy puking and praying I didn't die from nausea, to be tired:) but the fatigue has set in full force for me this week. I come home from work and can hardly keep my eyes open. I have fallen asleep on the couch almost every night. My doctor did call me and tell me I had a UTI and put me on an antibiotic that has thrown my body (and poor belly) for a loop this week. so that could be contributing to it. 

I have also had leg cramps in the middle of the night. I have been able to work them out without too much difficulty but yikes does it hurt to wake up to them. 

The heartburn continues but it is not unbearable. 

Oh the joys of pregnancy:) Overall it has not been terrible and I really can't complain. and as I have said before, each symptom is no big deal if it means she is growing and is healthy in there:) 

cravings: white chocolate covered popcorn. PB&J uncrustables:) 

thank you hunter!! this made me laugh:) 

27 weeks

last week in second trimester! 

ok, now I am freaking out a little bit:) (so is whitney haha). it just seems like it is getting so close! and I am asking myself all kinds of questions. like 'how in the world am I going to know how to be a mom?' or 'am i really responsible enough to care for another human being and meet their every. single. need?' or my favorite 'how am i going to survive on no sleep'. haha:) 

size: she is now 16 inches long and 2.5 lbs !! measuring the size of a head of cauliflower (this makes me laugh) 

what's going on with me: this week was a lot better as far as sickness goes. (i wish I could say the same for my poor husband... he is picking up every GI bug that comes into his ER:/) 

We had our appt with our OB monday and finally got to meet the doctor (not just the PA/NP). it was interesting:) she is very tiny and made several comments about my un-tininess. She told me I was swollen (which I am not, yet). and told me that i was 'short waisted' and would look like i was carrying a much bigger baby than I actually am. she also told me not to eat sweets that they were 'bad for baby, bad for mom' - as I glanced at the big bag of Twizzlers sitting open in my purse praying she didn't see them. anyway, it was humorous. and completely deflated my balloon i had going on about the amount of weight I have put on up to this point. (don't worry, I still consume sweets almost daily) 

I haven't been sleeping that well this week and work has been so busy that i come home at night feeling like my back is about to snap in half and like I have bruises on the bottoms of my feet. maybe I could convince Philip to rub them? (if you know how you know how comical this is;)). 

I have had some heartburn this week which made me hopeful that Ainsley will have hair. but philip told me that is an old wives tale and people just tell me to make feel better about an uncomfortable symptom. guess we will see:)  

what's going on with Aj: this girl is active. i feel like she is constantly moving. and not just moving but practicing her tumbling in there:) sometimes you can see her move on the outside of my belly and it always makes me laugh. its so surreal, i still can't believe that she is living and breathing inside me. 

she is sleeping and waking at regular intervals now. she is having sleeping cycles, including REM sleep! she is also opening and closing her eyes now. her brain tissue is becoming more developed and her brain is very active now. her lungs are still not fully developed, but she could survive on her own at this point (which makes my anxiety go way down). 

They did an ultrasound on me at work to teach some med students and the dr told me that her head and legs are measuring bigger than 27 weeks. she predicted I deliver her early (which my mom has been saying all along). 

We can't wait to meet her!!! 

26 weeks

We are 6 1/2 months into our pregnancy! I just can't believe it! I think I am finally starting to feel pregnant. This week was sort of rough, but throw in a GI bug/possible food poisoning and it would make a rough week for anyone :) 

size: she is 2.2 lbs and 15 inches long. measuring the size of a cucumber this week.

what's going on with me: well like i said it was not the best week as far as sickness goes. but that's ok!   She is growing and moving around a lot and that makes me happy :) My uterus is now the size of a basketball (holy crap). I haven't started swelling yet and my rings and shoes are still fitting, for now;) When I go on walks my fingers do swell but they always have at least a little. I have started having lower back pain and have had to add a few pillows to the bed at night, but nothing unmanageable:) My contacts have started not fitting as well, which i think is odd, but apparently normal. Overall things are going well! 

We have a dr's appointment Monday and will (finally) meet our new Doctor. I am anxious to meet her and hope Philip and I both like her as much as we think we will. 

what's going on with baby A: She has doubled in weight from 4 weeks ago! Which you can totally tell by looking at my belly:) Her nerves to her auditory system are developing more and she might even be able to recognize mine and philip's voice now! Her tastebuds are fully developed and eating spicy food could give her the hiccups:) (this hasn't happened yet!) She is starting to put on baby fat (maybe she will have my chubby cheeks?!) She can also start moving her head around. Her tiny little toenails have started to come in too! 

We got a lot done on the nursery this week, thanks to my mom and Aunt Ellen. They came over and painted the whole nursery for us, while I supervised:) It looks great and hopefully today Philip can finish the rest of the moulding and painting and the walls will be done! 

Philip putting together the closet

my favorite women painting my baby's nursery! (aunt ellen has never painted before, we feel so honored)