30 Week Bumpdate - The Countdown is on!

How Far Along?: 30 weeks!  Let the countdown begin...10 weeks!!

Boy or Girl:  Proud of the little boy growing big and strong in my belly!

Weight Gain: 23lbs

Doctor's Appointments: Had my 28week check up where I did the 1-hour glucose test.  I passed!  Yay!  Though, I never thought I wouldn't.  It wasn't an issue with Peyton either.  However, I am anemic again.  But other than that we are both doing perfect!  I am measuring 2 weeks behind, but I'm tiny, I'm not going to get but so big.  The baby measures right on point though, he just has very little room to move around...probably why he kicks and punches a lot ;)

What's Going on with Momma?: Getting really tired all over again like the 1st trimester.  That's to be expected in the 3rd but I was hoping it wouldn't happen at the beginning.  I am anemic as well so that also has something to do with it, taking iron supplement now. 

Memeroable Moment: Peyton still loves to talk to Baby Jake and rub my belly.  She now says she has a baby Elmo in her belly and I need to rub her's as well.  Probably the cutest thing in the world.  He is so active now that Jeffrey and Peyton can feel him moving.  It's so special to lay down with Jeffrey and put his hand on my belly and let him feel the boxing match going on in there! :) 

Movement:  Oh the movement.  I will say it again...I NEVER felt this much with Peyton.  I guess she was just so restricted with her umbilical cord and being breech.  As far as I know he is still head down.  I feel I am right on this because I can play with his feet as he stretches and they poke out.  I love doing that...just tickling his tiny foot. 

What I Miss: Alcohol.  Let's just face it.  It's true.  I'd like a glass of wine...or 12.  And a margarita on the rocks would be wonderful.  Go ahead.  Judge if you must.  But you better belive when the kiddies go to bed this spring/summer I will be indulging lol!

Nursery:  I really need to start on this, like yesterday!  Cleaning out the room has been the biggest pain and what is holding up the process.  The changing table, crib, rocking chair and dresser are all in there set up we just need to move the junk and paint.  Luckily I've got several volunteers to help and hopefully make it a one day process!

The Big Sister: She is growing up y'all.  We've gone from toddler to kid.  No turning back.  I'm ready to go on maternity leave not just to welcome our baby boy but to spend time with her too.  To see her with Jake.  She is absolutely, hands down going to be the BEST BIG SISTER there is!

24week Bumpdate

How far along? 24.5 weeks

What I'm craving?: Still want chocolate milk on the regular - every.day

Funny/Memorable Story Of The Week: Peyton went with me to my last appointment.  While waiting in the room she started "checking" the baby's "beatheart" with her imaginary stethoscope   She was also telling me to lay down and trying to put my feet in the stirrups haha!  She was right in the middle of my actual check-up.  Pat let her pull out the tape to measure my fundus and even squirt the jelly on the Doppler   We all listened to the heartbeat and she got just as excited as she normally does.  After I was done Pat asked her if she wanted to hear her heartbeat.  So Peyton got on the table and laid down and got to hear her heart over the Doppler   Pat even recorded it and sent it to me like she did the baby's the first time we heard his.  Peyton had a blast and now says she wants to go with me to the doctor every time ;)

Weight Gain: 18lbs

Doctor Appointments: Just a normal check-up.

Work-Out Regimen: Keeping up with my 3 year old, does that count?  And walking up stairs several times at work, and back and forth to other offices?

What's Going On With Momma?:  Got some Braxton hicks going on.  I felt my first one at 17/18weeks and they have been sporadic.  But I guess with all the hustle and bustle of the holidays they have increased in frequency and intensity.  Though, they are not of concern.  Thank goodness!!!  Some can just put me a a pause while they happen, and this is all new to me because I felt hardly any with Peyton.

Boy or Girl:  Still a boy ;)

Sleep:  So so.

Movement: So much movement.  I can definitley tell a sleep/wake pattern with him.  

What I Miss:  Sleeping on my stomach and being able to walk a ways without getting short of breath.  And a dang margarita!

What I'm Looking Forward To: Decorating the nursery and getting it ready.

How Baby’s Growing: I assume good because no one has told me otherwise.  And my belly is all him, he's bigger than what you can see from the outside.   

The Big Sister: Understanding a little better what all this baby business is about.  She has felt him kick and that was a weird expression on her face when it happened haha.

What's in a name?

Well since we have concretely decided on a name, I thought I'd share.  I'm not one to keep the baby's name a secret, though I wanted to be sure we weren't going to change our minds before we told the world. 

So here it is...our baby boy's name...

JACOB

DAVID

We will call him Jake.  I just love it!  It was what I had picked if we had a boy the first time around so I'm glad my husband likes it too. 

Daddy's initials are JDH and so will Jakes.  I wanted to keep the same initials without having a Jr.  You see my father's name is Jeffrey too, it was get confusing, and that's just too many Jeffrey's.  Jeffrey's middle name is David too, which was his grandfather's name.  I really wanted to keep the family name.  Also, I did not want to call him David because someone would inevidibly shorten it to Dave or Davey and I can't stand that (sorry if that's your or your son's name).  Jacob is also a strong bibical name, I really like that. 

So there you have it folks...our SON'S name (still can't get used to the fact I will have a son, eeek)!

19 Week Bumpdate

How far along? 19 weeks (really 19.5)

What I'm craving?: Still want chocolate milk on the regular.

Funny/Memorable Story Of The Week: Finding out the baby’s gender.  I had my husband, Peyton and my best friend Sarah in the room the Wednesday before Thanksgiving.  So fun to have them all involved.  And Peyton thought it was so neat to see the baby on the screen!

Weight Gain: 16lbs

Doctor Appointments: Normal quick check-up, one gender ultrasound, then the anatomy scan and another quick check-up.  And I’m a full moon again because as soon as I stepped through the door of the office my midwife rushed to the hospital for a delivery.  Though I didn’t have to wait long for her return and we had the anatomy scan first to fill up time. 

Work-Out Regimen: Keeping up with my 3 year old, does that count?

What's Going On With Momma?:  I FINALLY am over morning(all day) sickness.  Been vomit free for 3 weeks now, though I still get queasy each day for a bit it’s nothing compared to what I was going through.

Boy or Girl:  The baby was cooperative and we are having A BOY!  It’s a dream come true…because if I’m being honest I always dreamed of having one of each.  Though, I always saw myself as a mother of two girls I couldn’t be more happy we are having a boy.  Of course my husband is ecstatic!  And my mother-in-law and cousins dreams were right on point.  (I’m signing my MIL up for the Psychic Network by the way ha!)

Sleep:  Awful…I’m exhausted and preg-somnia has set in.

Movement: Goodness gracious does this baby move!  He is head down, which never happened with Peyton she was always breech, and I feel so much more movement with him.  I even felt him turn head down.  So here’s hoping he can stay that way and we can have a VBAC.  He is becoming more active at different times during the day so I’m hoping the trend continues and he sleeps good at night because I never feel him when I get up, and he hasn’t woke me up yet. 

What I Miss:  Sleeping on my stomach and being able to walk a ways without getting short of breath.

What I'm Looking Forward To: Decorating the nursery.  But before that of course CHRISTMAS!!

How Baby’s Growing: 10oz according to the anatomy scan.  He is measuring and looking perfect.  Everything is where it’s supposed to be, in working order, and that makes me more relieved than anything.    Gender is one thing but knowing the baby is healthy warms this momma’s heart.  Because I stress over that until that day. 

The Big Sister: Getting used the idea that yes the baby is a boy and she will have a brother.  Also, learning his name.  Right now we are consumed with everything Christmas, and I love it.  She is following in my footsteps and adoring it as much as me!

Big Changes

I live in Southeastern Virginia, before you get to the traffic hazard that is Hampton Roads area.  We are rural – country.  Actually, I live on a farm, a farmer’s daughter.  I was born and raised on this farm just as my dad was, and his dad, and his dad before him.  It’s been in our family for more than 100yrs and is registered as a Century Farm.  You can kinda say I’m attached to this land, to this place.  “There’s No Place Like Home” a quote from my all-time favorite movie has no truer meaning than for this place here in small town USA, what we call Cedar Lawn Farms.

My husband and I built our cozy little home at the back of one of my dad’s fields.  In our simpleton mind, we have the life.  A house you can’t see from the road, acres and acres of woods around us to hunt (for my husband’s sake), and a little pond down our lane that when we stock it back, our children will fish in during summer break.  My grandparent’s house is a row of trees and a field over, and beyond that is another row of trees and a field then my parent’s house.  Yes two minuets are all it takes to get to my childhood home. 

My dad farms cotton, wheat and soy beans.  He has fields all down our road and around on the next country block.  Even on the highway that runs through the small town that our farm is outside of.  And that highway gets me to the point of this post.

VDOT has decided that they need a faster way to transport cargo from Richmond to the ports in Portsmouth.  Going down the existing highway called Rt. 460 just isn’t fast enough.  Because scattered all along this highway which stretches from Blacksburg to Suffolk (across the whole state) are small towns with stop lights.  And you know stopping for a stop light every 60miles is such a hassle for truck drivers. 

So VDOT has, with influence from the manufactures that are shipping this cargo, put into effect to create a whole new Rt. 460.  One only for cargo trucks and tractor trailers, to bypass the small towns only to have the cargo arrive, here it is, HALF A DAY sooner than it was before.  HALF A DAY!, or a whole day depending.  Also, truckers will have to pay a toll, a mandatory toll because they have to use this new highway or be fined, each way…out of their pockets in hopes to get reimbursed (or given a stipend beforehand).  Virginia does not have the money to build this highway or the man power so they have contracted this work out to a private company and hence the toll. 

There will only be interchanges every so often and regular traffic will be prohibited from taking this road unless there are certain conditions that I can’t remember. 

Building a new highway means taking private land and claiming imminent domain.  Well that folks is what’s happening to part of our farm.  The new 460 is passing right through our farm.  In fact it will be taking the house I grew up in, my parent’s house.  That’s how close I will now have a highway to me and my cozy little paradise.  And not only will they take the house but the grain bins, shelters and old peanut drying shelter.  Of course the state will have to pay my dad big bucks for all of this because it is affecting his living, takes away acreage that produces our family’s means.  But who cares about money when you are talking about family?!

Luckily, my grandparent’s house (big, beautiful pre-Civil War plantation-esque house) will not be affected.  Both of my grandparents have passed and the house was left to my dad, so they will be remolding (since the electrical wiring is so old and it needs a face-lift) and moving there.  I thank God that that house and fence and red barns will still be there.  But it breaks my heart that my kids won’t really know my childhood home, and that I won’t be able to go “back home”.

This process started in 2004.  Archeologists came looking for anything that could prohibit building there: Native American burial grounds, endangered animals, precious rock, etc.  But found nothing.  It doesn’t matter that a cemetery behind my parent’s house, where relatives from over 200yrs ago are buried, will be dug up and moved.  The state doesn’t care about that. 

I am so angry.  And I am so sad.  I have been mad about this since they first announced the proposal.  I do not understand why they need a service road just for cargo, when the outcome does not produce that big of a difference time-wise.  Why are we a world that has to have things in a split second?  Why can’t we just slow down?  I believe America and the world would be a better place if we just took time to take life in.  But yet this is all in the name of progress.

I could just scream.

Construction starts December 2014.  I have two years to cherish everything that is Cedar Lawn Farms right now.

Pregnant with Peyton: The progression of a bump

I wanted to post pictures of me pregnant the first time with Peyton.  They aren't they best.  And I look so young!  But here they are...

16 weeks

18 weeks

21 weeks

23 weeks

25 weeks

28 weeks

30 weeks

32 weeks

34 weeks

37 weeks

39 weeks, 4 days before she was born

I hope to have a post like this for Baby Holt #2!!

Bumpdate: 15 Weeks

{Trying to get back to posting these updates...so behind!}

How far along? 15 weeks

What I'm craving?: Food in general...I'm always hungry!

Funny/Memorable Story Of The Week: Felt the baby move for the first time yesterday!  And I bought a fetal doppler because like any normal second time mom I'm more paranoid by this pregnancy than my first (sarcasm).  I really don't understand why I frett so much but this has put my mind as ease being able to hear the tiny little heart.

Weight Gain:    11lbs

Doctor Appointments: So far I've had two doctor appointments and will go for my third tomorrow.  I've gotten an ultrasound at each and last appointment I got to hear the heartbeat!! 

And well I must be a full moon...because each appointment I've been to my midwife was at the hospital delivering.  But this second time I ended up having to reschedule because she wouldn't make it back before closing.   

Work-Out Regimen: none..I'm horrible but I've been so sick!

What's Going On With Momma?:  Can we say Zofran?!  It is my best friend.  Even into the 2nd trimester I've still having to use it because I'm nauseous.  Though the nauseua is just in the morning now instead of lasting all day...so that's improvement right?

Boy or Girl:  I'm back to having no idea.  We find out November 21 and I couldn't be more excited!!!

Sleep:  Better since I don't have to get up as often during the night.  Down to once.

Movement: Felt the baby kick/punch/roll for the first time yesterday.  Man it's been so long since first pregnancy I forgot what it felt like.  And it's amazing!

What I Miss:  Margaritas...big ones! 

What I'm Looking Forward To: Our gender scan to find out the sex.  And deciding on a name.  I thought we had a girl's name picked but I've changed my mind so we will see.

How Baby’s Growing: Avocado.  Big enough for mommy to feel ;) 

The Big Sister: She has grown so much in the last couple months being at school.  I can tell in her behavior and speech.  So I'm patting myself on the back for sending her right at 3 for 3days all day...because it has been wonderful for her and she loves it!  And smart, let me tell you.  The things she knows at 3years old are mind blowing!