6 Months

How is it possible my little baby is already half way to 1 year old?

At 6 Months:

• Has 2 teeth on bottom.
• Sits up all the time by himself
• Scoots around the house all the time!
• pulls up on knees and hands a few times a day...crawling soon I'm sure!
• still wakes up every 2.5 to 3 hours to nurse at night (sometimes 4 if I'm lucky!)
• started eating solids right at 6 months. seems to really LOVE eating food, more than brother did!
• generally happy baby unless tired, hungry or wet.
• has been a tummy sleeper since about 3 months

It's so strange to have a baby that is so mobile for this age. Ethan didn't start attempting to crawl until 10-11 months and walked at 17 months. I've also noticed the past few days he may be becoming a Daddy's boy just like brother! He even starts crying and having a fit if Daddy  walks out of the room. AND it also appears that he gets jealous if Daddy is giving Ethan loving and he is not with him as well. Today I paid extra attention to a situation when Andrew started hugging and loving on Ethan, Cole immediately started crying like he was having a fit. I handed over Cole to Andrew and he stopped! Is that possible at this age??

Wordless Wednesday: Tiny baby or Giant Zucchini??

2 Months

Seriously, where did the last two months go? I think I blink and missed April and May! Cole is really getting chunky which is something I never experienced with Ethan. I took his pictures in an old wooden cradle that I used to rock my baby dolls in. He is sleeping 5 to 6 hour stretches at night and has even had two 8 hour stretches this past week! I'm not holding my breath it will continue because Ethan did the same thing when he was an infant, but only last for 2 months. During the day is a completely different story. He's a cat napper which makes it impossible to get much done. I have reviews pending to write but it has been difficult to get them done because I'm still trying to keep on top of the housework as well while we are attempting to sell our house. I'm getting good sleep at night now so I won't complain about the day issues ;-)

 Cole is also a great nurser, but I think he's starting to refuse any bottles. I have had no luck giving him a bottle over the last week and a half or so. I'm still pumping once in the morning for now to keep my supply up so I'm building a nice stash since he is not taking a bottle. We will see how it goes over the next few weeks, I may stop pumping.

1 Month Old

I can't believe he's already a month old! He now weighs 10 lbs 8 oz and is 21 3/4 inches long. Cole has been a piece of cake compared to Ethan as a newborn, but we've still had a few rough times. He has been colicky the last week in the evenings and we just found out yesterday that he has a mild case of thrush. Oh joy! I never experienced that with Ethan. I'm thinking his crankiness is due to the thrush and he also has a BAD case of baby acne all over his face and head. (you are looking at a photoshopped baby!)

He's a cat napper during the day and it's about impossible to get him to stay asleep for long unless I lay down with him in my bed. I've been putting him in bed with me when I get up for the 2nd feeding of the night the last few nights. I feel like I'm getting more sleep that way plus I now feel safe putting him in bed with me.  When he sleeps with me he sleeps for longer stretches and wakes up a pretty happy camper :-)

The breastfeeding has been going so much better than it did with Ethan despite the case of thrush we are dealing with now. I'm proud to say he has not had 1 drop of formula either! By the 3rd day I was supplementing with formula with Ethan and had to continue until he was about 3 months old. 

The last couple of days he has started to really smile which makes everything over the past month so worth it :-)

Bump 2 Baby Pregnancy Update: 37 Weeks

These last few weeks I'm doing a photo each week. Comparing photos from the last 2 weeks it doesn't look like I've dropped any. I didn't have a doctors appointment this week either although I really don't think there is any changes other than my pants getting tighter! ack! I have an appointment on Thursday and I'll be close to 38 weeks. In the mean time, I'm hanging in there. Or should I say Cole is still hanging in? haha!

Bump 2 Baby Pregnancy Update: 8 months

Wow, 36 weeks! My shirt won't go over my belly either. Had an appointment this week and nothing is going on and she didn't want me to come back for 2 weeks since everything is looking good as well. That pretty much confirmed what I've been feeling lately, I'm pretty sure he will be an April baby!

Other than feeling a little bit under the weather the last couple of days due to allergies (gotta love spring!) I'm doing really well. I am amazed at how much easier this part of the pregnancy has been compared to Ethan's. Yes, I have the general back pain, but it's not near as bad as I dealt with my first pregnancy so this has been a cake walk (even though it's not lol). I've also been telling myself that I'll go to at least my due date. It always seems like a lot of women really start complaining at 37 weeks if they haven't had a baby and by 40 weeks are just so upset if it still hasn't happened. I choose to stay positive, take one day at a time and love any extra days I have my baby in my belly :-) I don't mean to sound like I'm better than everyone else, but I do choose to have a positive attitude during this time. I remember with Ethan I was so miserable and it was difficult not to think negatively about him not coming before his due date. Focusing on it just made it worse! So in the mean time, I'm spending about an hour in the evenings on my birth ball to help him settle into my pelvis. I think it is also help keeping my hips and back loose and not aching as much. It feels really good!

We've had a busy weekend with birthday parties, but between that and general upkeep of the house (we're still trying to sell our house!) I've been working on washing all the baby clothes and bedding. After that is complete I'll pack all our bags (Ethan will need one for staying at his grandparents while we're at the hospital as well) and I'll be officially 'ready' :-)

I'll be taking weekly photos now. It's always neat to see how baby drops during those last couple of weeks. With Ethan it was very noticeable because the shape of my belly completely changed.

Pregnancy Comparison

Yesterday, on my 7 months pregnancy update I said I was measuring larger. Just for fun I put a photo of me at 39 weeks with Ethan (6 days before he was born) next to the one of me at 32 weeks with Cole. Yeah, not so fun now!! :-( How many of you were much larger with your second child?

Bump 2 Baby Pregnancy Update: 7 months

Tomorrow I'm 32 weeks, only 8 weeks left.......approximately. I thought over the last few days my belly has dropped a little (I know it's still too early for "the drop"), but looking at my 6 month picture I can't tell. Maybe Cole's just getting heavier and it feels lower. I am getting big though and measuring larger than I should. Although she didn't say how much bigger. Doctor also said that measuring bigger doesn't mean much since it could mean I have more water than average. I'm hoping I'm full of water!

It has been an interesting month. First of all I did pass my glucose test. I was secretly hoping I wouldn't so I would really have to watch how much I eat lol....However, I am eating healthier the majority of the time as you can see from my weekly menu plans I post on Mondays. Husband still brings home things that I am tempted to every once in a while. My blood work came back that I was anemic. That would explain why I never got that second trimester energy boost and that most afternoons I still have to lay down and take a nap. I was actually a little anemic with Ethan's pregnancy, but my doctor wrote it off as 'ok' and she didn't tell me to take any iron (just another reason why I didn't like my old OB!). I picked up a 'gentle' iron supplement at the healthfood store and have been taking that with some vitamin C in the mornings. I have noticed a little difference in my energy level, but there are still some days I'm still pretty tired. A couple of weeks before I had my blood work done I was having daily bouts of difficulty breathing and it was getting pretty bad. After a few days of taking my iron supplement it has gone completely away.

I think I had my first real pregnancy food craving last month! For about 3 weeks I was eating about 2 oranges a day and I felt like I couldn't get enough :-D I was fighting a sinus infection coming on and was taking about 10k mg of vitamin C a day too. I was shocked to look up that a typical orange only has 45 mg of vitamin C! There's no way you could eat enough vitamin C to help your body during a sickness. The craving has diminished some what so I'm wondering if it was my body just needing the extra vitamin C. Oh well, I was hoping it was a real pregnancy craving.

I'm definitely in the trimester where Cole really starts gaining weight and my back is agreeing! It's getting more difficult to turn in bed, etc. I get back aches more frequently. However, it is NOTHING like it was with Ethan's pregnancy and I thank God for that. He knows my limits!

I keep going back and forth about what kind of birth I want. I really wanted a natural birth for a while, but I just don't know. I pulled out my Hypnobirthing book again and I'm reading through it and also bought a birthing ball. My birth experience with Ethan was just so bizarre (3 days of on and off contractions and then I was still put on Pit to even get it really going) that I wonder if I'll even know this time when I need to go to the hospital. Will my body labor completely differently this time? I feel like I should prepare for a natural birth and just see how I progress when it's time. I'm completely against the Pit or drugs and I really prefer my water to break on it's own. The epi is the thing I waiver on. 

Bump 2 Baby Pregnancy Update: 6 Months

I'm in the 3rd trimester now! Wahoo! I'm getting more and more excited about Cole's arrival which is approximately 13 weeks. My energy level is doing pretty good, in fact I have more energy than I did with my 2nd trimester. Kind of funny since it is typically the other way around. I've had a little back pain off and on. Cleaning the floors is the definite way to make it hurt really bad for the rest of the day though! However, it's still nothing like it was with Ethan during this time, which was a constant pain. Still having insomnia so I'm just expecting it to be there for the rest of the pregnancy now.

I've gained TOO much weight!! Lets just say I'm pretty close to what I weighed with Ethan right before I delivered! Ack, not good! With the weight gain and being sick I've decided I HAVE to get back to eating healthy again and pronto. This will help me slow down the weight gain plus it will help me loose the baby weight faster post partum. I started eating better this week. It hasn't been perfect by any means, but it was a start. I also started posting about my meal plans as well which helps keep me focused on having completely healthy meals scheduled.

I really haven't had any cravings, other than oranges the last few days. The only thing I craved with Ethan was fish. I credit the lack of cravings from the super-dooper organic vitamins I take, which were the same ones I took with Ethan. Seriously, these things blow pharmaceutical pre-natals out of the water (but don't let me get started on how pharmaceutical vitamins are crapola to begin with...).

That's about it! Look for some baby product reviews & giveaways during my 3rd trimester now :-)

Wordless Wednesday- 25 Weeks

I had a doctors appointment last Monday, right before the sickness hit our house. I was surprised my doctor did an ultrasound in office. Cole would not show his little face yet again. He has no problem showing his bottom though! ha!

Hands and legs

I taped the ultrasound. It's two and a half minutes long if you want to watch. Beware, the first image is Cole flashing his bottom ;-)

Bump 2 Baby Pregnancy Update: 5 months

More than half way there! I'm 5 months and 23 weeks now. Not much to report on this month. Just feeling more movement and kicks all the time. My energy level has picked up a tad and I'm not as tired anymore. Although there are many afternoons I need a nap. I am starting to have that feeling that Cole is going to be a bigger baby than Ethan. He is already kicking up by my ribs and he's pretty strong considering his size. Yikes, I may not be able to use those extra small diaper covers after all! I'm still working on my diaper stash. As soon as Christmas is past and I have more extra time I'll get it finished and I will post about it.

Still no back pain. I've only had a couple of instances of having bad back pain, but it was because I was on my feet all day long cleaning the house for several hours. However, it wasn't the back breaking pain that I constantly felt with Ethan. I am so thankful about this and it makes this pregnancy feel a bazillion times easier than with Ethan! We'll see how I do as Cole gets bigger though.

Looks like we have settled on a middle name: Reid. I suggested that he have the same initials as me and really Reid was the only name we could come up with after looking at several  'R' boy name lists.

It's A ............

BOY of course! lol Within a couple of minutes he was flashing his goods then kept his legs pretty much closed for the rest of the 1 hour ultrasound. Good thing she got the photo the first time she saw it.

I admit I was a little shocked at first. Friday out of no where I had this really strong feeling that I should prepare to hear it would be a boy. Glad I did otherwise I would have been really shocked. After hearing that this US gave me the EDD as April 2nd instead of the April 8th (is what the doctors US showed, but her's isn't that great) it all made sense to WHY baby is a boy. April 2nd was my first EDD I figured based on my chart but after I entered more temps it changed it to the 7th. Without being too TMI on my blog, I knew that based on everything I had a really good chance of baby being a girl on the second EDD figured. I'm just so thankful that we found out now because I would have been floored at birth haha!

Now that the news is sinking in I'm happy that baby is a boy! This is by no means our last baby anyway and it will be nice for Ethan to have a boy closer in age than say baby #3 or later.


Here's some more photos below. It doesn't seem like I got very clear pictures and wondered if it has something to do with the fact she didn't press very hard on my stomach at all during the ultrasound? With Ethan the guy pressed really hard and I got some nice clear photos. I also didn't get a very clear picture of his face at all.

Baby's name is Cole. It is the only other boys name that we have come up with that we both like (hubby is extremely picky about the boys names!). Middle name is still yet to be determined.

Bottom of foot

Touching his knee.

My 32 oz of water.

Pregnant women love drinking 32 oz water down straight right? I found an easy way to do it in one large cup. Thought you would get a chuckle out of this pic! The water isn't clear because I squirted some lime in it already.

Bump 2 Baby: Pregnancy Update, 4 Months

Here I am at 4 months (18 weeks)! Just a couple more weeks and I'll be half way there. I'm sooo much bigger than I was with Ethan at this time. Just for fun (haha, yeah right!), here's a pic at 18 weeks with Ethan. It was my first pregnancy picture too. I need to go back and look at my records, but I'm pretty sure I weigh about the same if not a couple pounds lighter. I did start out 4 pounds heavier than I did with Ethan too. The batteries on my scale died this week. I almost thought that I just wouldn't buy anymore (husband never weighs himself, he's too skinny anyway and never gains weight), but then I thought that if I don't then I may be less motivated to watch how much I'm eating and gain more than I did with Ethan. No thank you! lol

What has been best about this month is that morning sickness pretty much left after 13 weeks! I haven't had to have a zophran since then. Yay! Every few days though I get a strong wave of nausea that hits me hard for a few minutes then quickly goes away. Tiredness is still lingering pretty good. The insomnia is starting to get much better, but then again here I sit writing this post at 4 am this morning! I felt like I was getting no sleep for weeks, it was a constant toss and turn every night. I also had a couple of weeks where I had a headache everyday. I was miserable so I went to the chiropractor and got immediate relief. I've only had a little back pain so far. This is about the time my back started really hurting with Ethan and lasted through my whole pregnancy.

I think I've pretty much given up on running any longer :-( With the strange foot pain I had to back off a few weeks back. My achilles is acting up again as well. I thought it would get better since I've backed off of running, but it hasn't. I first started having trouble last fall when I was training for the half marathon and was even having plantar facsitis pain as well. When I have backed off of running it got better. So now I'm thinking that the pregnancy hormones are just making it worse. I'm scared that if I keep going that it will make my feet worse and cause further damage. Add the fact that my belly is getting bigger, and running is very uncomfortable. I did give it a good go!

I don't want this to sound like one huge complaint post! The best thing this month was starting to feel baby move. We skipped the 'flutter' stage and went straight to kicking. Movements still aren't overly strong, yet, but I still enjoy those first few. I can't wait until they are strong enough for Ethan to feel. It will be fun to watch his reaction.

This Monday is the BIG ultrasound. I am so excited beyond words! My appointment is late afternoon so keep your eyes peeled for the announcement sometime that afternoon or evening :-) I will be shocked if it's a boy.......really I will, but I guess I have to prepare for that just in case since I didn't get a choice ;-)

The BIG Day is Scheduled! Guess the Gender!

Our ultrasound appointment is Monday, November 8th! Just a few more days! We didn't find out the gender with Ethan before birth, but because I think this baby is a girl I want to know for sure now. Just for fun I have a poll in the center of the blog. Take a guess :-)

Although I just know baby is a girl. For fun, I thought I would share a handful of things that have been different with this pregnancy than with Ethan. However, I know pregnancy symptoms can be the different even if it's the same gender. Maybe one of these reminds you of one of your pregnancies of a certain gender in particular. I am also writing some of these down now because I will forget later!

What's obviously different:  

• More tired! I don't remember the fatigue lasting this long with Ethan. Or maybe it's because I'm running after a toddler and doing all the housework this time around?
• Less nausea! While the nausea was definitly stronger than it was with Ethan, it actually stopped at 13 weeks this time and lasted with Ethan until about 22 weeks. However, every 3 or 4 days I have a strong wave of nausea that comes out of no where, but will last only for a few minutes.
• More hungry! I don't remember being this hungry with Ethan either. I am starving and have to eat a meal (or at least a protein/carb snack) every couple of hours.
• Insomnia! It has been much worse during the first/second trimesters than it ever was with Ethan. Insomnia didn't really hit me until the third trimester and I could get up, eat a snack and quickly go back to sleep. Part of my insomnia is due to hunger. I've learned to stay up way later so I can eat a snack right before I go to bed. It has kept me from waking up at 2 am wide awake, but sometimes I still wake up too early starving and then get up too early for the day! I haven't been sleeping well at all either. Something I didn't do with Ethan either. Just within the last few days I finally feel like I'm starting to get good sleep. This could explain the tiredness!
• No cravings! I'm still not having any food cravings. Daily my taste for "what sounds good" changes, but still no strong repeat cravings like I did for fish with Ethan. I loved fish! I'm still early in my pregnancy though so this could change.
• No back pain! *knock on wood* This was right about the time I started having extreme back pain with Ethan that lasted months post partum. I think a lot of this has to do this is my second pregnancy and my body is used to the changes. Plus with Ethan I worked full time, at a desk job. Sitting on your rear all day long is not the best for a pregnant woman!
• Chocolate! Ok, this is the kicker. I had serious aversions to chocolate during Ethan's pregnancy. I am a chocoholic too, so it was very strange. I started out the same way and it appears my chocolate aversions are slowly fading away. I'm still not the chocoholic like I am when I'm not pregnant, but at least chocolate tastes good to me now :-) Now, if that doesn't say 'it's a girl' I don't know what does!

So those are my very few differences. Just for fun! Now go vote :-)

Bump 2 Baby: Pregnancy Update, 3 months

Seems like the 2nd month dragged on! That's probably because it was the time nausea really peeked! I am so grateful that the nausea has substantially diminished during the last week. I'm now having more heart burn than nausea now, but I'll take that anyday. A Pepcid AC works well for that :-) The last few days I have been starving! Really I have to eat about every 2 hours and I have to have a good amount of protein. I'm still having lots of insomnia from around 2 to 4 am. I get up for a snack and a huge glass of water as well during that time because I'm...starving again lol. What else?

About 3.5 weeks ago I hurt my foot really bad after a 3 mile run. I was fine after my run, but the next several days my foot hurt so bad like I did more than just pull something. It was on the outside of my foot, where I have never had any issues. I had to slack off on the running for a while and also got some anti-inflammatory cream for it and finally it got better. I ran 2 miles the other day and was fine, so I'm crossing my fingers that I won't have trouble with it again. I really want to stay as active as long as I can, but at the same time I don't want to severely injure myself!

I had my monthly appointment last week and heard the baby's heartbeat on the doppler for the first time. Baby's heartbeat was in the 150s. I did not write down what Ethan's was at that time, but I'm thinking it was 160s. I go back the end of this month and then the "Big Ultrasound" should be scheduled right after! So I'm thinking in about one month we should know what baby #2 is :-) I can't wait!

I have been doing a lot of thinking about what kind of birth I want this time around and I'm seriously considering hiring a doula. I got a recommendation from my doctor, which turned out to be the same doula a friend of mine used.

Has anyone used a doula? What was your experience?

Bump 2 Baby: 2 Month Picture

It's amazing how that belly pops out there super fast the second time around! I didn't take my first belly photo with Ethan until about 18 weeks! And I look about the same in that 18 week photo as this 2 month one. Crazy.

On a side note...my internet has been acting up the last few days. We live out in the country and don't get great service. I'm trying to get blogging done while it's up here and there. I'll have more reviews & giveaways up soon.

Bump 2 Baby: First doctor appointment

Monday was my first doctor's appointment. I switched to a new OB/GYN this time around. My old OB/GYN I have seen for several years, but I just don't like how I was treated during the last couple of days leading up to my delivery and the delivery itself. Both of my SILs and also a friend go to this OB/GYN and I've always heard great things about her with their deliveries. Her personality is so much different than my old doctor. She reminds me of a grandma though :-D Her staff is also much more pleasant as well. Her office and the hospital I will deliver at is also much more conveniently located and easier to access.

The first appointment is always so exciting isn't it? Since I'm a new patient there were a bazillion and one questions to answer. The best part was seeing the baby for the first time on the ultrasound. My wordless wednesday post today is my ultrasound photos if you would like to take a look. My new doctor doesn't have a fancy 3d ultrasound machine like my old doctor and she isn't very techy either so there were no close ups. We did get to see the heartbeat on the ultrasound and that was really neat! I measured 3 days behind my April 5th EDD, but my EDD will remain the same since it's less than a week's difference. Not that EDD means a whole lot anyway. However I do have my chart so I know exactly when things happened ;-)

She went over my bloodwork that I had done a couple weeks ago. Something I found very interesting is that with Ethan my labs showed I was non-immuned to Rubella, but my labs with this baby say I am! After I had Ethan the hospital was really pushing for me to get the MMR before I left, but I said I would get it later. I did some research and decided I should not get the MMR. (I'm pretty much anti-vaccine now anyway. Ethan has only had 3 single vax.). I'm glad that I opted not to get the MMR. Still isn't that so bizarre about my labs??

My new doctor is a marathoner and I talked to her about running. She fully supports running as long as I like. She even coaches a Fleet Feet group and told me about a lady due in October that is getting ready to run a half marathon. Wow, I'm just thinking I'll be lucky getting by with 10 miles or less here haha! She doesn't think an increase in mileage is bad, but says to really listen to my body and stay well hydrated. Believe me, I'm still huffing and puffing and not thinking about increasing mileage anytime soon. I'm barely getting in 4 miles now! However, usually you start feeling better in the 2nd trimester and maybe my running will pick up then.

I go back on September 30th for my next appointment. I will be 13 weeks then.

Wordless Wednesday: Baby's First Pictures

Baby measured 8w3d on ultrasound. Not the best pictures, but at least it's something :-) I will be posting about my appointment later.

Here's a real life photo of what a 8 week old baby looks like.