1 Month- How did that happen so fast??

1 month Stats

Weight: On Friday’s weight check he weighed 8 lb. 6 oz. He was born 7lb 14 oz and when we left the hospital he weighed 7 lb 4 oz. We have had a hard time gaining weight (whose child is this??), so we’ve done weight checks every 5 days. We’ll have another on Wednesday so then I’ll update his weight then.
At one month Emi weighed 8lb 12oz so he’s a little smaller.

Length:  He was born 21” and at one of the numerous appointments he had grown another half inch.
Emi was born 19.5”, but she felt longer than he does. He stays scrunched up most of the time.

Percentiles: At the weight check before Friday he was in the 17^th percentile for weight. I don’t know about height; we’ll find out at the 2-month appointment.

Eating: This has been a struggle! He eats great every 2.5-3 hours, but according to the pediatrician’s office, he isn’t gaining enough weight. They want babies to gain half an ounce each week. He doesn’t act like he’s starving, but we’ve been supplementing a little to help him gain weight. Breast feeding with Emi was hard from day 1, but with him it’s been easy, so it’s been frustrating to hear that it’s still not enough. He also doesn’t really like the formula. He cries and most feedings he spits it up. I bought a different brand at the store yesterday to see if that helps. So now he’s feeding every 3 hours and then I’m giving him a bottle every other feeding. So most of my day is consumed with some type of milk.

Bedtime: Haha!! When he first came home he was a champ sleeper. Not so much anymore. We usually do a feeding around 8:30-9 and I try to put him down after that and go to bed with him.

Awake: He is spending more and more time awake. He usually feeds, plays for a few minutes or is held and then he’ll take a nap in the swing.

Naps:  He’s definitely a napper. Emi was NOT! He does not like to take a nap in the crib or pack-n-play though. He only likes to nap in the swing. :/
He also likes to nap in the car seat. He’ll spend a couple hours there if you’d let him.
I’m going to try this month to get him to take a couple naps in the crib.

Diapers: He’s in newborns. According to the weight, he could wear size 1s, but they swallow him! Whenever he moves up to size ones we’ll be set, because he has a stock pile of size ones and twos.

Clothes: Mostly newborn. Thankfully these are starting to look less baggy. A few 0-3 month onesies fit, but not well.

Favorites: He loves bath time even though our first go around wasn’t great. He inherited Emi’s pink, butterfly play mat and he loves it. He also loves his swing, which is nice because Emi never liked it. He loves to be carried in the baby wear sack. He kinda likes his pacifier. He loves to eat. And of course he loves to be held.

Dislikes: Sleeping in his own bed… :/
He’ll sleep in my bed, but then you have to worry about rolling over on him or sheets in his face. If you put him in his bed he cries, but put him in our bed and he passes out right away.

Latest accomplishment: He’s starting to find his voice. He’s made a few sounds, but then he looks shocked that the noise happened. It’s cute. He has slept in 5-hour stretches, but of course only in my bed.

1 month in Pics

March 11

This is one of my favs!

March 12 

March 13 (going home day)

March 16

March 17 (official due date)

March 19

Working on the brainwashing already.

I was going to send out announcements, but I started thinking that all the people I would send them to are on Facebook and see the pics, so why waste the money. Here's the 2 I created though. 

March 21

baby smiles are the best

March 22

She's always asking to hold him. 

March 25

March 27

March 28

March 31

meeting all our family!

April 1

not a fan!

3 generations of Piccolos

April 3

mommy made me go to the park so sister could run off some energy!

Ok this isn't so bad...

April 4

April 5

No school means lunch at the park with my sisters.

April 6

Baby faces...

April 8

April 9

Naps on the couch with daddy

April 10

Having 2 older sisters means being okay with pink! ;)

I'm done with you people!

April 11

His sad face is so pathetic!

 Emi one month vs. Eli one month.

39 weeks! Last Day Pregnant!!

39 Weeks with Emi

I look just as rough! Not sure why the pic is so yellow though. 

How far along? 39 weeks. LAST. DAY. PREGNANT! I can’t say the last day forever, but maybe. I’ll have to forget about how much I hate being pregnant first!

Size of baby? The bump app says the size of a watermelon. I certainly feel like I’m carrying a watermelon!

Heartbeat? She didn’t tell me at the apt on Tuesday, so who knows. All I know was it was there and that’s all I need to know!

Total weight gain/loss? I lost 2 pounds this week! Or maybe I was wearing lighter clothes. Either way I’ll take it. I think I’m totally out right around 37 lbs. With Emi I was closer to 30ish, but at least it didn’t shoot too much higher. Got a plan for when I’m done so I should be okay! And at least I have a couple months until summer where with Emi I only had a few weeks before summer started.

Maternity clothes? I am soooo excited about the idea of wearing regular tops. I know I’ll probably wear maternity pants for a few weeks, but at least I can wear a different selection of tops! I’m sick of wearing the same thing over and over! And maybe my shoes will fit again too!

Stretch marks? The ones that had faded on my hips from Emi are very noticeable again. But other than that I don’t really notice any new ones.

Sleep?  Ehh. I guess when I’m asleep I’m out. I don’t lay awake wishing for sleep so that’s good. But I usually sleep about an hour at a time before I have to reposition.

Best moment this week? Going to the last appointment! It was the last step before Friday!

Movement? He’s not moving as much, but he’ll get uncomfortable or something and move all at once.

Food cravings? Not really. I’ve had the nausea come back recently so at dinner I don’t feel awesome. Just discovered that Tums are miracle workers. I usually use Zantac because it’s a pill and I hate the chalk taste of Tums, but I was desperate the other night and broke down and ate a Tums. I felt better in 5 minutes. Who knew???

Gender predictions? Boy. To be named tomorrow!

What I miss: Clothes. Haha. I have such a large closet in our new house, but I’m stuck in this 3 ft section where I’ve placed my maternity clothes temporarily. I keep wondering what I’m going to do with that space when I can finally pack up the maternity clothes!

What I'm looking forward to: Friday! And I’m kinda looking forward to seeing how Emi reacts. She talks about bubba a lot, but usually when she’s telling me that she isn’t going to share anything with him. This week I think she finally understood that bubba will be a baby. She thought about that for a second and then told me “I’m gonna hode him.” That was the first time she said anything positive about the idea. I don’t really think she understood that he’s going to be a baby. She loves babies, but not the idea of “bubba.” I think when she thinks of “bubba” or “sissy” she thinks of Bella who is older and aggravates her so she’s wanted to assert her position over bubba. When she actually stopped a second to think about the idea of a baby, she didn’t seem so put out. So maybe she’ll be happy when she sees him and realizes he’s not going to steal her baby dolls; just her mommy…

How are you feeling? Pretty crummy, but the end is in sight! These last few weeks have kicked my tail!! I feel good for about 3 hours a day and then miserable the rest. I read back through this blog with Emi and evidently I felt the same way with her so I guess you truly do forget, because I have thought this one was way worse than her, but reading through those posts in 2013 I wrote nearly the exact same thoughts as I’m having now!

38 weeks 9 days to go!!!

I guess I didn't take one with Emi

How far along? 38 weeks

Size of baby? The bump app says the size of a pumpkin.

Heartbeat? On Tuesday the dr said 140

Total weight gain/loss? +35

Maternity clothes? Of course, but even some of them are too tight now! L

Stretch marks? Still just the ones left over. And the nerve pain has gone away so that’s good.

Sleep? Nope… I guess I’m sleeping when I fall asleep, but it’s short lived because I wake up in pain and have to move or stand up. I know when the baby comes I won’t sleep well either, but at least it won’t be painful sleep.

Best moment this week? I had my family shower and my work shower. We got TONS of diapers and lots of cute clothes! He’s going to be a stylin little boy!

Movement? He’s not moving as much, but he’ll go through moments when he won’t stop moving and then he’s still for a while.

Food cravings? Nothing new, but I have been having to eat small snacks between meals to keep the heart burn from attacking. And I get realllly hungry around 3:00.

Gender predictions? Still a boy. To be named on March 11^th I guess.

What I miss: Sleep!

What I'm looking forward to: Spending the weekend getting my nails done and doing things with just Emi. I’ve been feeling some mom guilt over how much her life is about to change. I know it’s normal and she’ll eventually be fine, but I think this transition is going to be hard for her. This weekend we’re meeting Lolli and Pops for nails (Pops is watching Emi) and then her and I are going to go to the Tulip farm in Pilot Point either Saturday afternoon or Sunday. Something for just Emi and Mommy before she has to share the attention. It’s different with Bella, because she doesn’t require me to hold her or need me for every single thing. Emi has to share with Bella, but in a different way.

How are you feeling? I’m just glad there’s a definitely end date in sight! No matter what next Thursday will be my last work day and Friday will be my last morning pregnant unless he comes earlier!

37 weeks- The end is in sight!

37 weeks

37 weeks with Emi

How far along? 37 weeks, but the doctor said he had a growth spurt between last week and this week. She said he's measuring closer to 38 weeks. 

Size of baby? The bump app says the size of a Winter Melon.

Heartbeat?  I think she said 140 on Tuesday

Total weight gain/loss? Not sure. I'll weigh tomorrow, but definitely more than with Emi. The doctor scale was higher than the last week with Emi so that makes me frustrated. 

Maternity clothes? Yep. I'll be so glad when I'm done with them. I want to wear more than the same 8 outfits every week. 

Stretch marks? Still just the ones from Emi. Although the dark line has finally appeared.

Sleep? Not good sleep because everything hurts, but the week as a whole was way better than last night. Last night I slept maybe 2 hours because my stomach hurt so badly. I think I had really bad heartburn which then turned into stomach pain. I nearly told Anthony we needed to go to the hospital, but I did not want to be the person that goes to the hospital only to be turned away for gas or something like that.

Best moment this week? Got more work in the nursery done. Just need to hang a couple more things and it will be complete. 

Movement? Lots of moving, but also lots of Braxton Hicks so maybe the movements aren’t really movements.

Food cravings? Water. I want water all the time. And I’m hungry all the time! I don’t necessarily want anything in particular, but I feel nauseous again if I don’t eat.

Gender predictions? Boy. Still no definite name.

What I miss: Energy. I want to be able to take Emi outside and not want to die.

What I'm looking forward to: This being over!! I know that brings its own trials and difficulties, but I’m ready for it.

How are you feeling? See above! LOL. Too tired to answer this that’s for sure!!

35 Weeks

35 weeks with Emi

35 weeks. My face says it all!

How far along? 35 weeks

Size of baby? The Bump app says the size of a large coconut 

Heartbeat? I think at last week's apt it was 131. 

Total weight gain/loss? 

Maternity clothes? Yep, just trying to get by with what I have too. No need to buy anything else for 5 weeks. I did go and buy some pants to wear in the hospital. Nice soft, stretchy pants that won't rub the incision. I plan on wear those for a few weeks after delivery!

Stretch marks? Still just the ones left over from Emi. But I have nerve pain from stretching on my stomach so I hope that doesn't leave marks when I'm done. It feels like my whole stomach is sun burned, but nothing visual yet. 

Sleep? Just painful! I am only comfortable for about 30 minutes at a time. It was definitely not this bad last time around!

Best moment this week? I got some more done in his room. I just need some frames for the posters I bought and some trinkets to go on the shelves that I hung. 

Movement? He moves ALL THE TIME! I guess it was a little less this week. Maybe he's out of room! I get less jabs, but he moves at night like he's running a marathon. As long as he keeps his feet out of my rib cage on the right side I'm good. And of course as I typed this, he stuck his foot right in that sore spot!

Food cravings? I want salads when we go places, but I don't want to make them at home. I want a nice big salad with chicken and lots of veggies!

Gender predictions? Still a boy- Down to 2 names (although don't tell Anthony, but I know I've won! ;)) 

What I miss:  Sleep! And energy! And peace and quiet. With Emi there were just dogs to take care of. Now there's a toddler, a teenager and her grades, and 2 dogs that I barely like most days and there's never quiet!

What I'm looking forward to: Finishing up the room. I put together a bright red book shelf over winter break and put a few books on it. It needs some more decor though because most of the shelves are empty. And Emi keeps taking his books away so it's basically just an empty book shelf. 
This week I hung up some brown floating cube shelves that just need some trinkets to go on them.
I also hung the Velveteen Rabbit painting.
My plane posters finally came in that I need to hang. I'm looking for 2 red and 2 navy 16X20 frames. I'm sure Michael's will have them. 
I have one more thing on Etsy I'm ordering, but I need a name for it. It's one of those peel and stick vinyl decorations that will have a plane spelling his name behind it. 
It's coming together.
I got my rocker so I just need a navy or red pillow. I haven't figured out curtains yet, but maybe he won't need them with the blinds. I did really like how dark Emi's room was with her curtains; especially at nap time in the middle of the day! So maybe I'll find some navy, black-out ones. 
If he came today, it would be ready enough. The furniture is in place and there's bedding in the crib. The rocker is ready with the lamp and the pump next to it on the rocker end table. I just need the lamp shade from Target that I want and a light bulb would probably help. haha. 

How are you feeling? Thankfully I've avoided most sicknesses this winter. (Yes, I'm knocking on wood!) There's been a nasty stomach bug that has swept my school and friends and Emi has had some virus, but I've managed to steer clear.
Everything else is awful though! My ankles are extremely swollen to the point that the dr warned me last visit of bed rest if I didn't watch it. I'm doing my best to sit during the day, but that isn't always possible. After waking up, all of my legs joints are swollen and hurt. When I get up in the middle of the night to use the restroom, I have to pause for a minute to let the pain in my knees and ankles pass before I start walking.
I have nerve pain on the right side of my belly. Clothes hurt to the touch and when I bend over I want to die! Hopefully that pain goes away, but it scares me that it's nerve related. 

I take heartburn meds before every meal. 

So basically I can't wait for it to be over! Haha. But I know it'll all be worth it and of course I'll forget soon enough how much I hate being pregnant.