27 Weeks

How far along: 27 Weeks.

How big is baby: The size of a head of Cauliflower (almost or at 2 lbs)

Total weight gain: 20+ lbs….. I turn my head at each appointment now.

Sleep:  Doesn't exist, but what’s new. Can’t get comfortable no matter what position I’m in.

Best moment of the week: Getting to meet my friends handsome little baby boy that arrived on Wednesday evening. He is so tiny and adorable; it makes me so anxious for this little girls arrival. We also got to buy our tree and decorate it this week! It’s starting to make it a reality that Christmas is only 13 days away. Coming up next week I’ll be posting Santa’s cookie recipes. I told the kids they could each pick a cookie for us to make for him, so we shall see what they choose.

Food Cravings:  Just sweet awful processed crap and coffee creamer in coffee….but it was short lived. I now don’t want it haha.

Food Aversions: I got nothing.

Symptoms: My stomach feels like baby girl is trying to burst through whenever she stretches, kicks, rolls, or moves. My back hurts after being on my feet for more than 30 min. Christmas shopping has mostly been online for this reason. One loop around the mall and I’m dying.  

Mood: Up and down. Sadly I found out my Aunt (Titi) passed away last night so I’m pretty sad about that. She was the sweetest woman who always gave you the best hug and compliments. I’m glad that she isn’t in pain any longer, but she will be missed by all of us.  

My Titi Nora who passed away (on the right) with my Titi Neauvel.

Movement: Just think of the movie Alien. That’s what it’s like at this point.   

What I’m looking forward to: Christmas still, and for time to just fly by. We are down to 11 weeks!! I have all my Dr. appointments scheduled. Now let’s start stock piling baby stuff!!!

25 and 26 weeks

How far along: 26 Weeks.

How big is baby: Some people say an Eggplant some people say some root veggies…. Use your imagination.

Total weight gain: 20+ lbs…..

Sleep:  I don’t understand this word??? Let’s see…since I wasn’t able to post last week, I have gotten a stomach bug and baby girl grew a gazillion lbs overnight SO between those two things I’ve gotten minimal hours of sleep. If you could see the way I have my side of the bed setup in order to minimize hip pain, waking up with acid in my mouth, and easier turning radius, you’d probably laugh. I’m basically sitting upright with two pillows against my headboard. It’s the only way I’ve found I can sleep for more than 10 minutes at a time.

This is my sad picture of how big my belly is. Ryan took me hunting and obviously I no longer fit into my overalls haha

Best moment of the week: I guess this should actually say best moments of the last 2 weeks.  Thanksgiving was very nice, we had immediate family over and I baked entirely way too much haha. I may or may not have overdid it. I got some good deals online for Christmas gifts. Like I said before baby Lundberg has grown huge in the last couple weeks and my stomach has stretched tremendously, any moves she makes aren’t feeling very cute anymore. Worst moment of the week would have to be getting the stomach flu and having to get a couple IV bags to re-hydrate. Last night the kids got to get all dolled up for their Christmas program and they looked SO handsome/beautiful!!!

Food Cravings:  Well once I actually had an appetite  I craved French fries of all things…. Weird.

Food Aversions: All things this week. I wanted nothing to do with food.

Symptoms: Random back aches, ligament stretching, stomach itches to no avail, any movement feels like she’s trying to burst out (alien style) and acid reflux at night.  

Mood: I’ve been pretty ok. Tired….I guess. Is tired a mood? Sleepy?  

Movement: Well she has officially discovered what feels like every single one of my organs. She moves most of the day, takes a cat nap and then runs a marathon in my uterus.   

What I’m looking forward to: Christmas! We are hopefully decorating this weekend and getting our tree next weekend. We are also getting close to single digit weeks left!!! 12 weeks!!!!

24 Weeks (and a muffin recipe!!!)

How far along: 24 Weeks.

How big is baby: The length of an ear of corn

Total weight gain:  20 + lbs

Sleep:  I am officially lacking in sleep. My hips are killing me, I have to roll over every 5 minutes to relieve the amount of pain one side is in. Random side cramps also wake me up and make it so I can barely breathe. I guess she’s just getting me ready for her arrival.

Best moment of the week: It’s been a pretty chill week. There really hasn't been a lot going on. We should be having a lovely evening tonight tho!

Food Cravings:  Nothing…

Food Aversions: Nothing…

Symptoms: I’m uncomfortable and itchy!!! Winter has finally hit the PNW, and with it all the moisture in the air. My skin is the Sahara desert and is covered in little war wounds from my constant scratching. Poor skin. I’m trying to moisturize every second of the day to prevent my little knife hands from going to town.

Mood: Just cuddly I guess. I want cuddles from my babies and Ryan a decent amount of time. Other than that I’m just fine.

Movement: So much movement!!! She must have grown a ton in the last couple days, because she has been kicking my butt!!! I could feel her little fingers pushing on my stomach the other day. It’s such an amazing feeling that I will miss for sure. The only time it bothers me is when I’m trying to walk to do something.

What I’m looking forward to: Thanksgiving next week and all the baking that comes with it!!! As per usual I’m looking forward to the arrival of my little girl, and Christmas shopping for the kiddos!!

I do want to give a little shout-out to my mama who turned 70 today! She has been one of the biggest inspirations for me as a woman, as a mother, and as a person in general. She loves harder than any person I know and is the epitome of a beautiful woman who has aged gracefully.

I promised on Facebook that I would share a recipe for something I made this week. Sadly, I didn't take any pictures of it (I’m sorry!!!!!), but trust me when I say they were sooooo delicious! They were gone within 2 days. My son, Ezra, learned all about cranberries in school last week. As a result he realized he had never tried one and requested that I bake him something with fresh cranberries (they HAD to be fresh not dried). I found a recipe for White Chocolate chip Cranberry muffins, and I think this will become a breakfast tradition. I don’t even love cranberries and I loved these.

White Chocolate Chip Cranberry Muffins

You’ll need:

½ C unsalted butter (1 stick), softened

½ C granulated sugar

¼ C light brown sugar

2 large eggs

½ C sour cream OR Greek yogurt for a healthier version

2 Tbl buttermilk

2 tsp vanilla extract

1 ½ C all purpose flour

1 tsp baking powder

½ tsp ground cinnamon

Pinch of salt

1 C white chocolate chips

1 ¼ C fresh cranberries (plus a couple extra to top off with)

Directions:

1. Preaheat oven to 425, grease muffin pan and flour it (or you can use liners if you prefer, just note that the white chocolate chips will stick to them) *also note that this recipe yields about 14 muffins.

2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Add the butter, sugars and mix on high speed until light and fluffly (about 2 min).

3. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, and add the eggs, sour cream, buttermilk, vanilla, and beat on med high speed until combined (again about 2 min).

4. Scrape down the sides of the bowl again (I tend to stop and do this often).  Add the flour baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, and beat until just combined (about 1 min). Try not to over mix as it will result in tough muffins.

5. Add the white chocolate chips and beat on low speed about 30 sec. You can also choose to just hand mix these in the case that your mixer doesn't like mixing in “chips”. Stir in cranberries (do those by hand).

6. Using a large cookie scoop or ¼ measuring cup, scoop the batter into the muffin tin. They should be about ¾ full.

7. Top each muffin with 2 or 3 cranberries and bake at 425 for 5 minutes.

8. Without opening the oven door, turn down the temperature to 350 and bake for about 18 to 20 minutes. The total baking time should be 23-25 minutes. Once you hit the 20 min mark use a toothpick to check and see if they need a couple minutes longer or are complete. You don’t want over baked muffins….no one wants those.

9. Allow muffins to cool in pan on a wire rack for about 10 minutes.

Recipe adapted from http://www.averiecooks.com/2014/11/cranberry-white-chocolate-muffins.html

23 Weeks

How far along: 23 Weeks.

How big is baby: The length of a large mango

Total weight gain:  Close to 20lbs :/ I just keep telling myself that I can lose it just as easy as it came once my little girl is here. I plan on being very strict with my diet and using Isagenix as my main source of nutrition (that will be amazing for not only me, but baby girl too).

Sleep: Well my daughter has decided her favorite time of day is when I decide to lay down to go to bed. I will lay on my side and she will kick off the bed….. While it’s very cute, when I’m rather very tired all I want to do is sleep, not feel my adorable daughter jump up and down for an hour or two.

Best moment of the week: Not going to lie, this week was sort of a letdown. The kids grandparents were in town so they spent it with them at their dad’s house. Ryan went back to work after being off for the last 3 months from getting back surgery, so I was rather alone haha. Apparently the needy pregnancy gene kicked in, cause I was throwing all kinds of pity parties. The best moment this week is today/tonight, while my husband will be away hunting (that sucks a lot since I do enjoy his company), I get to have a special weekend loving on my babies. There will be tea parties, sushi dates, and movies.

Food Cravings:  Maybe bagels? Really I haven’t wanted anything in particular.

Food Aversions:  For once guacamole was sort of gross to me (it was a sad moment).

Symptoms: Permanent stuffy nose, random contractions (more Braxton hicks kind), more ligament pain from sitting or lying in certain positions, itchy legs, lack of sleep….that about covers it.

Mood: Lonely and a little bummed out. I’m hoping to change that this weekend. I think just being around the kids will help lighten my mood.

Movement: Tons of activity for longer periods of time. She loves when I lay down and eat/drink anything. She’s definitely getting bigger. Bella finally felt her move around and she thought it was the coolest thing ever.

What I’m looking forward to: Baking!!! Lots of baking. I’ve been watching way too many baking shows and holiday competitions on TV haha. We are down to 15 weeks now (technically I turned 24 weeks today, so I’m always a week behind when I post) and I’m starting to get a little impatient. 

Ryan and I as children. We've been trying to imagine what our little girl is going to look like.

22 Weeks

How far along: 22 Weeks.

How big is baby: The size of a Papaya

Total weight gain:  I will be finding this out next week at the Dr’s. I will say that I found a picture of me when I was pregnant with Ezra at 24 weeks and I was a A LOT bigger than I am now. That makes me happy haha.

Sleep:  I randomly wake-up at least once a night after apparently having been sleeping on my back (a big no no) and have a huge side cramp form overly stretching my ligament while trying to roll over to my side. Usually at that point I realize I have to pee as well, but the minute I stand up I realize that I can’t breathe, because of the back sleeping, and have to take like 5 breaths to get back to normal. Meh.

Best moment of the week: Halloween was pretty great! Bella was a princess in a blue dress (who was absolutely NOT Elsa……) with blue and purple hair. At one point when someone asked if she was Elsa she shook her head and said in a very Christian Bale sort of voice, “I’m Batman.” I love how alike we are. Ezra was a SWAT member, and also a little candy thief haha. You know the families that leave bowls of candy on their front porch and say take one (we’ve all done it), well to Ezra that meant take a handful. Ryan was a Lumber Jack and I was a pregnant cat. 

 The best moment of the week was also my daughter’s soccer team’s last game. I’ve learned it’s so rewarding watching kids that you coach take all the things you’ve taught them and do them on the field. We had the best game of the season and I was such a proud couch by the end. 

Food Cravings:  Nothing to report on.

Food Aversions: Thins that I tend to eat regularly. I’m starting to get sick of the usuals.

Symptoms: Just the random ligament stretching pains.

 Mood: Stupid stupid emotions. Any sad news story or youtube video or ridiculously happy news story makes me cry. Looking at my kids when they are being cute, or sweet, or just sitting there concentrating on something makes me cry…. Bleh. Same goes with getting annoyed. I’ve been getting annoyed at the smallest things. Below is one of the many things that caused me to cry.

Movement: Baby girl punched her daddies hand this week. She is starting to be more active throughout the day. It’s such an amazing feeling. I remember this now with Bella and Ezra, it was my favorite part about being pregnant.  

What I’m looking forward to: Dr. appointment next week. Other than that not a whole lot. I’m starting to sort of count down the days till I get to meet my baby. We are at 16 weeks now! 

21 Weeks

How far along: 21 Weeks.

How big is baby: The length of a large banana

Total weight gain:  Probably more than I’d like :/. Unfortunately my body remembers being pregnant and welcomed it, promising extra roomy accommodations. Casa de Mama Natalie very luxurious womb.

Sleep:  Sucks. Wake up, realize you’re not comfortable, think about getting up to pee (but let’s be honest you’re too tired to actually get up), use your whole body to roll over (otherwise you might overstretch ligaments and you will regret that if it happens), get as comfortable as you can (which is only like 60%), fall back asleep, wake up 40 min later….repeat.

Best moment of the week: Meeting Stan Lee and taking Bella to her first comic book convention. There was a lot of great art work and some very cool replica stuff. Bella was a little weary of all the people dressed up (particularly Deadpool haha). After months of her being excited to meet one of the creators of Marvel, she ended up panicking when it came time for us to take a picture with him and wouldn't go near him or smile hahaha. I love that kid.

Food Cravings:  I can’t think of anything in particular.

Food Aversions: Again, nothing in particular.

Symptoms: Just random aches and pains. I’m in that in between stage, where I just sort of feel large, but normal. Not in too much pain, not sick. I know my days are numbered, but I will say that being pregnant and not being a beautician makes a WORLD of difference.  

Mood: Meh… I haven’t had time to really be moody. Within the next month life will finally slow down!!! No more soccer, only gymnastics.

Movement: I am starting to be able to see when she pokes random body parts. While I took a bath the other day she decided to poke her little butt out (or what I’ve assumed is her butt haha) and you could see it very clearly on the outside.  

What I’m looking forward to: Halloween is tonight! I love getting the kids all dressed up and seeing their happy little faces. Ryan and I are sort of dressing up too. Not anything crazy or big, just to help get into the spirit of it for the kids’ sake. Next up is Thanksgiving my busiest baking season!! I don’t have my menu quite figured out yet, but I will post when I do.

Bella and her friend feeding our goats.

20 Weeks

How far along: 20 Weeks.

How big is baby: The size of a butternut squash

Total weight gain:  Not sure, I didn’t look at my last appointment and usually tend to avoid scales.

Sleep:  Isn’t great. I wake up every time I have to roll over and keep having awful very vivid dreams. Also I’ve been starting to get uncomfortable lying in bed.  

Best moment of the week: Last weekend Ryan and I got to go to Kellogg, ID on a marriage retreat. It was really nice to get away from our busy and hectic life. The scenery was gorgeous (I’ve never been there when there is no snow) and the actual retreat part was just what we needed to hear.  Of course I missed the kids, but it sounds like they had a very fun weekend with Grandma and Grandpa.

Food Cravings:  This week it has been bad haha. Let’s see any type of Asian food, strawberry pop tarts, a nibble of a brownie, ummmm I think that about covers it.

Food Aversions: I think I’m very over eating Salmon at restaurants. I’m the only person that can actually grill/cook it and make it taste yummy.

Symptoms: Random sciatica pains down my leg, but not very often. 

Mood: Emotional. I started watching birthing videos on youtube annnnnd it makes me tear up and get all excited (and suddenly very impatient). I also may have a bit of a temper, woops.

Movement: She has been kicking and rolling on a more usual schedule. She hates when I cross my legs or when my dog, Mater, tries to lay on my belly. It never gets old. I absolutely love  

What I’m looking forward to: Tomorrow my daughter and I get to go to Pac Con, a comic book convention, and meet Stan Lee!!! If you know Bella and I then you know how excited we are to do this. I’ve been a huge X-Men fan since I was her age (thanks to my big brother Eddie), and that led me down the rabbit hole of the Marvel Universe. I have passed that love down to her and she has become my mini me.

19 Weeks

How far along: 19 Weeks

How big is baby: The size of a Heirloom Tomato (I don’t like this description haha)

Total weight gain: Same!!!! Around 12 lbsish

Sleep:  Well last week my body decided to retreat and I caught the stomach bug that everyone had. It wasn’t fun at all and for a couple nights I got no sleep. Baby girl didn’t make it any easier by deciding to squirm and move around while I had chills and tried to sleep. Otherwise sleep has actually been just fine.

Best moment of the week: Ryan’s birthday and seeing our little girl again! Last night was my husbands birthday, so as per request, I made him some carrot cake cupcakes and snickerdoodle ones. He has been sneaking cupcakes every time I turn my back now haha. I will hopefully have these recipes up the beginning of next week. I also had my 20 week ultrasound/appointment yesterday. We got to see our little girl and she is definitely growing!! Her little hands were either next to her head to in her mouth most of the time and we got an awesome shot of her nose and mouth (see below). A little less than 20 more weeks and I get to meet this beautiful girl!!!!!!!

Food Cravings:  It’s so random. This week I absolutely had to have a strawberry pop tart. I still haven’t been able to fulfill this craving, but it’s still there. I don’t normally eat them ever, so this is an odd one. Also mashed potatoes just sound amazing all the time…..

Food Aversions: The only thing I’ve noticed is the smell of anything containing breakfast sausage. Bella was eating a sausage a couple mornings ago and I almost gagged. The worst smell ever.

Symptoms: Ever since the stomach bug, my digestive tract isn’t up to par. I don’t have the same appetite and let’s just say prune juice might be at my desk…… Other than that I’m just getting huge.

Mood: Normal moodiness. Nothing out of the ordinary. Maybe more sadness at looking at my kids and how big/old they are, they aren’t my little babies anymore (who’s kidding….they’ll always be my little babies, even in their 40’s).

Movement: Ryan has finally felt her move by putting his hand on my belly. She loves to put her feet really low and kick my lower abdomen/areas you don’t love feeling kicks. I can tell she moves all over the place at random times too. She hates when I cross my legs, so soon that will be retired.

What I’m looking forward to: This weekend!!! Ryan and I are going on a marriage retreat in Idaho. I can’t wait for a nice relaxing break, this should be really good for us.

Last thoughts: The nurse practitioner that went over my ultrasound said everything looked great, but did add one thing in the middle of telling me it looked good that I was a little concerned about. She said that normal placentas have the connection to the umbilical cord in the middle of the placenta, but mine is on the side. She said that it’s ok and can be normal, but we’ll just have to measure the growth each visit to make sure she keeps growing fine, but no no no don’t worry!!! It’s completely normal…. Obviously I am a little worried and she didn’t do a very good job explaining why having a cord connection on the side vs the front would make a difference in growth, so I’m asking: Have any of you experienced this (or someone you know)?

18 Weeks

How far along: 18 Weeks

How big is baby: The size of an Bell Pepper

Total weight gain: Not sure I avoid scales at all cost J

Sleep:  It had been going pretty well (other than normal waking up every time I roll over), until everyone in my household decided to get a 24 hour stomach bug. Let’s just say mama took care of everyone who woke up vomiting towards the end of this week.

Best moment of the week: We got to carve some pumpkins!! Unfortunately with the amazing 80 degree weather we have been having our pumpkins aren't looking so good now haha. I also finally succeeded in making a bread item that didn’t turn out awful. For how much I love to bake (and it generally turns out good), I’m the worst bread maker of all time. For some reason yeast and I don’t get along so well with baking. I may have made the world’s most basic roll, but dangit it was fluffy on the inside!!! Also bought my little girl a couple outfits….I can’t help it!!! I get excited.

Food Cravings:  This week I think my only craving has been for a pumpkin loaf from Starbucks, which hopefully my lovely sister will be bringing me today. Other than that I still hate eating. I wish I had a private chef, it would make meals so much easier.

Food Aversions: Nothing notable. Still the same mostly.  

Symptoms: Starting to get a little sore from being in the same position too long and having to pee a lot more.  

Mood: Had some emotional breakdowns last week, otherwise doing pretty good. Lots of exhaustion from being up all night taking care of people.

Movement: She’s a mover ladies and gentlemen. Her favorite times to go crazy are after I have consumed food or orange juice while I’m sitting at my desk at work, and after the kids are asleep while I’m sitting on the couch with Ryan watching TV (fall t.v is back!!!!!!).

What I’m looking forward to: Our 20 week appointment next week which happen to fall on Ryan’s birthday. I love birthdays. I enjoy spoiling people, so this upcoming Thursday should be a lot of fun. Baby girl even gets to say happy birthday to daddy via ultrasound!

To conclude I wanted to ask your opinion about something: Do you share the name of your upcoming child with the world before you have them, or do you wait till the day they arrive? With Bella and Ezra I always said the name the minute we found out the sex. I had no problem the first time around, most people (family included) liked the name and were encouraging. With Ezra I experienced a name thief who at the last minute named their child something rather similar to his full name, it sorta bummed me out. This time around I had shared her name with a couple people, only to have a couple family members voice their dislike of it very openly……yeah that didn’t make me too happy. I’ve now decided not to share her name until she’s born, as I’ve seen lots of people do currently. This way you can’t hate the name….you will see an adorable baby and just call her by her beautiful name and not have a second blink to it. What do you guys thing?