36 weeks 5 days…. that’s the official count as of today. It’s crazy how time can pass so quickly and yet so slowly at the same time. Each week of each trimester has crept by, making all of the aches, rashes, swelling, vomiting, restless legs and insomnia seem like permanent fixtures in my life (even though I know they are not). Yet somehow our little girl’s arrival is right around the corner and I feel as though Chris and I were just finding out the happy news that we would be parents.

I haven’t done a very good job at keeping up with belly updates – Sorry to Baby Baker’s grandparents!

Here are a few photos to give you an idea of how much Baby B has grown! She is currently weighing in at about 5 1/2 lbs

          

Time has definitely sped up during these last few weeks. I feel great (for the most part) and am in quasi nesting mode. I say quasi because it comes and goes about every other day – one day I’m a cleaning, baby prepping machine…the next I’m lucky to just make it through the work day!

There has been one thing that has really helped me these past few weeks. Chris surprised me by ordering a pregnancy pillow – The Snoogle. 

He had asked me if I wanted one early on during this pregnancy, but I refused the offer. I couldn’t justify spending that much money on a pillow when I figured I could use pillows we already had to make myself comfortable. I made do until well into the third trimester, but sleep was becoming more and more elusive. I was also having such a difficult time breathing while laying down. I don’t know if Chris ordered the pillow for me because he took pitty on how little sleep I was getting each night, or if he saw it as a solution for how little sleep he was getting each night as a result of my tossing and turning (and sighing rather loudly sometimes…on purpose…I know, shameful). 

I have to admit, I was skeptical. I think I was mostly skeptical because the pillow had such a dumb name (pardon my language and negativity). I mean, Snoogle?! Really?!  Even with my doubts, the pillow truly proved its worth during the first night. I slept through the night, except for one bathroom break around 2am (which was not Snoogle’s fault at all). The only issues it didn’t help alleviate were restless legs (is there even a cure for that?) and shortness of breath while laying down (but I’ve found that that depends on how our little girl is positioned because it varies greatly every night). I really wish I had given this pillow a try from the beginning. As a former back-sleeper, it is wonderful to have support on your front and your back to help you stay on your side throughout the night. 

Things are expanding quite rapidly around here (in my waist, to be specific). I’ve had to scour the thrift stores for some larger sized scrub bottoms to wear to work. We are allowed to wear business casual but that is not the most practical for me, considering the nature of my caseload – not really the ‘sit at a table and do work’ kind of kiddos. I prefer my scrubs; fortunately, the tops are still fitting well and I have plenty of room to grow in most of them. Thrift stores have also provided most of my non-work maternity wardrobe as well (mostly bottoms as I am still able to wear most of my regular shirts) -this is definitely a blessing because there is no way I want to pay retail prices for something I’m only going to wear for a few months – the trick to finding deals at thrift stores is to look often, particularly when it comes to maternity clothing. You can’t go in just once and expect to find something that is the right size.. and from the right decade. I’ve shed a few tears browsing through some of the ‘old’ maternity clothing out there….our poor mothers; the horror of what was considered ‘maternity’ back then!

Here’s a peek at how things have been progressing…

As you can see, parts of week 13 and 14 were spent in the ER for fluids and Zophran (which I am still reliant on in order to keep food down). Somewhere around 22 weeks I lost track of time and forgot to take a few ‘weekly’ photos (6 weekly photos, to be exact). Actually, that’s a lie…. I didn’t lose track of time, I just wasn’t feeling ‘up to’ a photo op for a few weeks. Womp, womp. Maternity photo fail.

So fast forward to this week – 28 weeks 5 days –

Our little gummy bear is not so ‘little’ anymore. She is measuring in at 2 lbs., 9 oz.

Next post: nursery progress

Easter weekend came upon me really quickly this year, as has almost every holiday recently (Valentine’s day, Hubby’s birthday…). I’m sure I must be distracted by work. Just Kidding, haha…. I’ve been distracted by BABY!

There will be an update post on all things baby later this week… but for now, lets talk Easter!

We spent Easter Sunday afternoon at my parent’s house; the weather was perfect!

 

Don’t worry, we aren’t one of those families that buys baby bunnies and baby chicks for Easter just for the cuteness factor and then realizes that they actually take work. My parents had just gotten a few new baby peeps that will soon be big enough to join the rest of the chickens at their home. Hence the title of this post. I love these types of peeps because they eventually mean yummy fresh eggs.

However, I have a deep and irreversible disdain for these peeps….

I might actually consider eating one though, if offered to me by this peep, my nephew who has a very generous heart and always wants to ‘give’ things to his aunt Ashley…sometimes I just can’t say no!