8 months prego!

8 weeks to go and I'm starting to feel some of the real pregnancy symptoms. The extra weight I've put on is getting to me---not only on the treadmill, which I'm still committed to once a week, but for everyday activities. I put on my socks and tie my shoes on the stairs now to make it easier. Sleeping is more restless as my hips and hands tend to fall asleep and get tingly, and the calf cramps have officially kicked in!

We had another good and typical doctor's appointment. The doctor and I discussed his previous patient's stinky feet and his son recently getting his license. He laughed a few minutes in saying "You know you're having a good and healthy pregnancy when we can talk about these things instead of your health!" He of course always makes me feel more comfortable and secure with the way things are going...so far. Ellie's heartrate was at 135 and my blood pressure is still low (as it usually is). I go back in another two weeks then he says I'll start weekly appointments---crazy!

Ellie's 3-D ultrasound last weekend went great! At first she was pretty shy, especially when the technician wanted to verify she is a she---she kept her hand down covering her area. We were so proud! 

We were also shown how flexible our little lady is! In this picture, you can spot both her hands, an arm and a foot all by her head! It's no wonder I feel so much movement in my belly. She must be doing yoga!

Eventually she moved her hands away and we got some great views of her! We're thinking she has her daddy's upper lip and my bottom lip and we can't decide about the nose but again thinking a combination of us both.

She definitely has her daddy's sense of humor as we got a shot of her sticking her tongue out. 

It was such a great experience for us all! My parents, our brothers and sisters-in-law, nephew and two of our closest friends were able to join us and to see Ellie. Her head has moved downward somewhat, which is of course a good sign. Measurements showed that at the time, compared to other babies in the womb at her fetal age, she was about 3 lbs and her legs measured in at the 85th percentile! We're going to have a very long-legged, beautiful lady on our hands : )

We had maternity pictures today with a friend of ours---love having a friend who does photography on the side and a great job at it! we went to a favorite StL photo-spot, Forest Park where there's lots of options. We started with some shots in the grass then made our way to a few other sites when it started to rain, of course, ha. Thankfully, we were all in good spirits and made our way to the Pavillion. We were able to get in some good shots undercover, and I'm really excited to see how they turn out!

How far along: 32 weeks

Baby size: squash

Current Weight: 154 lbs (29 lbs gain)

Maternity clothes? - switched to maternity jeans but still wearing some 'normal' shirts and sweats

Sleep? - restless

Best moment: 3-D ultrasound---makes me more anxious to see our little girl!

Miss anything: clear skin---crazy hormones!

Movement? active girl...just like her mommy and daddy

Anything makes you queasy or sick: nope

Showing yet? - yes!

Gender: GIRL

Labor signs: no

Wedding rings on/off? -  fingers seem to be swelling some so just planning to stick with the band

Mood: loving being pregnant

Looking forward to: seeing how our maternity pictures turn out!

30 Weeks

We've only got 10 weeks to go! Time is certainly flying by. I've definitely been growing more and more as our little Elizabeth grows inside. People are even beginning to comment on my pregnancy as they tell me I'm obviously pregnant---thinking hoping that's a compliment! "They" say she's between 15.2 - 16.7 inches in length and 2.5 - 3.8 pounds. Her brain is getting more wrinkly as her brain tissue continues to develop and she's now strong enough to grasp a finger. It's absolutely incredible to read about how much she's growing and developing inside me.

As for me, my dreams are definitely weird in full force. I continue to have dreams that a man is attacking me in some way or another. Apparently my anxiety and uncertainty is getting to me while I sleep. I've been relatively calm for the entirety of my pregnancy thus far, which is somewhat odd for me considering that I'm typically high-stress and high-strung. I know Steve and I both are taking advantage of it, and we sure hope it continues!  As my belly grows, sleep gets a little more difficult. I wake up more often for potty breaks and it's harder to get comfortable with my belly. Randomly I wake up and my hand is asleep on whichever side I've been sleeping on. I'm told this is 'normal'---anymore I feel like everything is 'normal' because every pregnant woman has a different experience and symptoms.
Even with the weight increase, Ellie is apparently running out of space. In addition to my shortness of breath, I keep feeling her press against me like she's stretching and pushing for more room. This morning in church I swear she was giving me a 'pound it'. For anyone who's unaware, this is essentially a fist-pump. Steve taught our dog Bailey this trick so we're hopeful Ellie will catch on with it quickly as well, haha. It's really neat for Steve and I both to be able to feel where her knee or foot might be pressing against me yet I'm sure in the next month or so, she'll be pressing into my ribs/lungs more and be quite uncomfortable.
As for swelling, my ankles really only do so after a run. I've been limiting myself to one day of running per week and only doing so until I'm uncomfortable or crampy so it's minimal. My ring finger has begun to swell somewhat and is posing a little difficulty in removing my wedding ring at the end of the day. I have a feeling I'll be done wearing that in the near future : (

We had a good doctor's appointment--- my weight, blood pressure and both our heart-rates are all great. He told me I can continue to workout until I'm uncomfortable and it's likely that she'll tell me when she's had enough. I go back again in two weeks!

We also had a prenatal appointment with our pediatrician this week. She was recommended to us by a couple others who really like her. Her office happens to be only two miles from our home too so will be very convenient if we need to get there quickly (which hopefully won't be the case) and for the many appointments we'll have for check-ins and vaccinations in the first year. She clearly spends her days with kids as she has a very bubbly personality so we're sure she'll be great with our likely high-energy little girl : )

This next weekend we have a 3-D ultrasound scheduled! We're hopeful that she'll cooperate and we'll get a glimpse into what our little girl will look like!

How far along: 30 weeks

Baby size: cucumber

Current Weight: 152 lbs (27 lbs gain)

Maternity clothes? - mixture of both

Sleep? - continues to get rougher

Best moment: our baby shower---loved little lady!

Miss anything: even just a sip of wine : )

Movement? active girl...just like her mommy and daddy

Anything makes you queasy or sick: nope

Showing yet? - yes!

Gender: GIRL

Labor signs: no

Wedding rings on/off? -  on...for now

Mood: loving being pregnant

Looking forward to: our 3-D ultrasound

Ellie's a spoiled little girl already!

Last weekend was my baby shower put together by my amazing mom (best in the world!), sister-in-law and some of my best girlfriends! There are many pictures to follow. I would have had fewer but couldn't help but post what a perfect day it was. Really, I could have had many more!

My baby shower was absolutely amazing. I loved everything about it---from the adorable diaper cake centerpieces....

...to the sugar cookie dessert bar (of course I took the picture before the yummy fruit was out)...

...and delicious macaroons and cupcakes!

At the shower, each guest was asked to write a note for Miss Elizabeth to add to her 'blessing tree'. We received many notes of congratulations, encouragement and love as a reminder to us on those tough sleepless nights or cries of uncertainty. The tree is going to look perfect in her nursery. The beautiful flowers and other decor only added to the perfection of the day!

They also had a salad bar (that I didn't get a chance to picture), which is perfect to fulfill my constant craving for salad during this entire pregnancy and adorable milk bottles to drink pink lemonade out of and personalized water bottles! There was pink and chevron everywhere, and the room was filled with touches from each of the ladies to make me fall in love with it all. The ladies in my life know me very well! 

I know my crafty momma was a large part of how wonderful the day was and will be a large part in the mother I become. I truly am blessed with the greatest mom in the world :)

I cannot thank my 'party planners' enough for the time and effort they  put into my baby shower. I love each of them and cannot wait for our little girl to meet them all!

I was quite overwhelmed by the number of family and friends who attended my shower to show their love for Steve and I and Baby Elizabeth.....even more overwhelmed by the growing number of gifts! I was literally opening gifts for over an hour! It's amazing how much a little baby can need and how gracious the loved ones in our life have been in helping provide us with those essentials...as well as helping load her growing wardrobe with precious outfits! The first thing Steve said when he saw it all was, "Wow. There's SO much pink." : ) 

I've had the privilege of being pregnant at the same time as some beautiful ladies in my life! Erica (far left, purple) and Katie (second from left, teal) are two girls from Steve and I's bible study who we met last year. These two have become very important in our life and I'm so thankful God brought us all together. In such a short time, they've both become treasured friends---especially since our four little girls will be the best of friends! Jarrah (orange) and Nikki (far right, teal) are two amazing ladies that I've known since the sixth grade. As we giggled over our new boyfriend or the new BSB CD, we surely never considered that years later we'd be sitting at dinner talking about what foods we craved and how much we miss that crisp glass of wine. You hang onto the good ones in life and these two's little men will surely be two of our little Ellie's best buds! Lastly, my sister-in-law Stephanie (my direct right) is due in the next few weeks with our second nephew Jaxson. It's been an exciting ride being pregnant together during the holidays, sharing our anxiety over hyperactive Ziebka kids and anticipation for the little cousins to be buddies.

These ladies have all made the pregnancy ride that much sweeter : )

Our nephew Landyn (who will turn one next week---crazy!) is just as excited to be gaining a baby cousin! We love this little man more than words can describe. Being an aunt and uncle is one of the greatest feelings in the world and we can't wait for our brothers and sisters-in-law to share the incredible experience.

I mean really, how frigging precious is this little man?!

One of Steve's many favorites from the shower---we know our little Ellizabeth is already very loved by so many!

Miss Elizabeth is going to have two amazing aunts---who happen to have given and will be giving me two very special nephews!

My sister-in-law Lauren did amazing things helping with my baby shower. She came into our lives less than two years ago and has already become such a huge part of my life. From helping me register for baby gifts and picking out the best carseat to simply chatting like great sisters should, she is a treasure.

Between the time and energy our family/friends put into the day, to the time it took to come share our day

(I wish I could've chatted with each individual there for an hour at least each!) and the generosity in showering Elizabeth with gifts---Steve and I could not thank everyone enough for their love and generosity!

It was by far a perfect day for the three of us : )

Well hello there, Third Trimester!

28 weeks and officially into the third trimester! I cannot believe how quickly time is flying by!

Elizabeth is supposedly weighing in around two pounds and around 14 inches in length (we're expecting a long baby). She's reached what they call 'sustainability' at this point, which means that if she were born tomorrow her lungs are developed enough for survival. This is of course encouraging, though I have zero signs of her arriving anytime soon. Studies have also shown that she can recognize voices and even distinguish between Steve and I's. She obviously doesn't know it's her mom and dad's voices yet but knows the difference. Her mom and dad are doing plenty of talking to her :)

Everything I read says that I'm likely experiencing aches and pains and lack of sleep but so far have been fortunate enough to avoid these........for now. I keep telling Steve that I expect to wake up one morning miserable, though it will more likely be waking up in the middle of the night that way! I am experiencing plenty of the weird pregnancy dreams---most of which involve someone attacking me and hiding in the back of my car. It's not fun.

My running is also not so good. I had all hope when getting pregnant to continue running and even got the okay from the doctor---'Keep at it! Just don't do anymore than you did before you were pregnant.' I was so encouraged that I thought it was a good idea to sign up for a relay with a couple girlfriends to keep myself motivated. I clearly didn't think that through! The race is at the end of March and each of us is supposed to run four miles each. Lately, I'm topping out at one mile, ugh. That extra weight sure isn't helping!
Instead, I've been swimming a lot! My friend Bryan has been good accountability and company while we swim. We started out slowly and only doing a half mile when still in my first trimester. Last week, Bryan was busy and I had some extra time in the pool and swam the furthest I ever have---one and one half miles! While discouraged from my running, I'm hoping to keep at it with swimming! I feel better than ever in the pool! Entering my third trimester, I did finally switch to the maternity swimsuit to stop torturing Bryan with seeing my big belly in the bikini, ha.

My biggest adjustment lately has been her crowding my lung capacity! I randomly can't catch my breath as our little girl stretches out in search of more space. Speaking of her stretching for space, this last week we've started to feel her pushing against me. Steve was feeling her kick the other day and asked with a little hesitation, 'What's that lump right here?!' Her foot! It's actually really cool to know and feel her tiny feet as she grows. As she gets bigger and her space runs slimmer, I suspect the lung capacity will shrink even more and pressure from her jabs and kicks will increase :)

My latest craving---Pepsi. It's very odd for me. I've never been a big soda drinker, always opting for Sprite when I did want it. Now, for some odd reason, I get random cravings for fountain Pepsi!

More health updates on my front----I had my glucose test performed mid-month. Funny story---I figured the test was self-explanatory. You drink the sugary drink one hour before the blood testing---easy enough, so I didn't read the one-page directions. Steve decided to read it the night before in case I may have missed something and calls me over to the table. "Honey, this says to avoid all high-sugar foods and carbohydrates for 48 hours before the test." Sure enough, I'd had a random craving for a donut that day followed by Mexican for dinner; not to mention, I was eating a Twizzler as Steve's telling me this....oops! Too late at that point! I figure the point of the test is to be sure your body processes the glucose properly or not so we'll get some real results! If your levels are 130 or above you have to go in for a three-hour follow-up glucose test. Mine came in at 124! Passed by a few tortilla chips!
From the same test, they determined that my iron levels are low. No surprise there. I've always been borderline anemic but at the beginning the prenatal had evened me out. Apparently now that Ellie is growing my imbalance is back so I'll be starting an extra iron supplement to help.
Other than that, our 7 month doctor visit went really well---healthy mom and baby! We go back 2 weeks from now and will then proceed with bimonthly appointments.

Sorry for the long post today. I may have to start posting more regularly. It seems that too much happens over the month's time! Next week is our second baby shower though so you'll be hearing from me again soon...

How far along: 28 weeks

Baby size: eggplant

Current Weight: 148 lbs (23 lbs gain)

Maternity clothes? - sometimes but still wearing regular shirts and my skinny jeans unbuttoned

Sleep? - off and on---still up a couple times for potty breaks

Best moment: baby shower---goodness, our baby is loved!

Miss anything: wine----vinaigrette-based caesar dressing had fulfilled that craving!

Movement? very active; she's started to put pressure on me too we can feel her foot pushing 

Anything makes you queasy or sick: nope

Showing yet? - yes!

Gender: GIRL

Labor signs: no

Wedding rings on/off? -  on

Mood: excited

Looking forward to: our second baby shower next weekend