8 Weeks

Baby is the size of a Pygmy Seahorse
(Sorry, no bump pic this week.  I will try to be more consistent when I start showing.)

New for baby this week? Head is huge, making up half of baby's weight, baby has lips, nose, and eyelids.

Total weight gain/loss? Still even.

Maternity clothes? No.

Stretch marks? No.

Sleep? Not as tired as last week.

Best moment this week? Ultrasound, sharing the news with close friends and family.

Miss Anything? No.

Movement? No. But I am so excited for that part!

Food cravings?  French fries. 

Anything making you queasy or sick? I threw up after eating a banana and egg one morning.  So strange.

Have you started to show yet? I feel fluffy this week. My abs aren't as tough as they used to be.  Joe made the comment I looked a little pregnant (in scrubs) at work this week.  I think it gets worse as the day goes on.

Gender? The nausea, acne, and higher HR than Bran have me thinking girl.  Joe also seems to be leaning towards girl right now.  Aunt Renee said Bran is going to make a great big brother to his baby sister (haha). 

Labor Signs? No.

Belly Button in or out? In.

Wedding rings on or off? On.

How is mama feeling? I have been nauseous every day this week.  But I never feel terrible all day.

Looking forward to? Our anniversary

Our staycation came to a quick end. Our last weekend in town we went over to our friends'
 house in London.  Bryn, Mandy, and the boys are going to be moving soon so we took advantage of a fun weekend out on the lake.  Bran wasn't as excited about the boat as I thought he would be.  But he still seemed to enjoy it.  Joe let him swim with him in the lake a little bit but he didn't love it.  He much preferred running around on the boat.We also went to Bran's friend Cooper's 4th birthday party, and had dinner with the Mayhills. We didn't spill the beans at the birthday party.  After Joe making a few awkward comments at the Mayhills about what I wanted to drink I decided to go ahead and jump in and share the news.  They found it quite entertaining that what happened in Nashville did not stay in Nashville. 

Bran's first tattoo.

Tuesday was a really busy day for us.  Brannock had his 18 month check up. He was 33 1/4 inches (72nd percentile) and 29.8 lbs (86th percentile).  He only needed one shot at this appointment and didn't even cry.  It was also the first time he got weighed standing on a normal scale.  He is such a big boy!  The pediatrician loves his fun personality and thinks his verbal and motor skills are above average for his age.

Later in the afternoon we had our first appointment with the OB.  Bran and Joe were able to come to the appointment to see the new little peanut's first ultrasound. Everything looks great and baby is measuring on track for an April 5 due date. Bran was so incredibly cute at the appointment!  He was so excited to watch and kept saying "baby!". Dr. Turner was talking to him and said okay Bran here comes the heartbeat, it is going to sound like a train.  As soon as he heard it he started going "choo choo". I think my heart melted.  Brannock is going to be the best big brother (even if he really has no clue what is going on right now). The baby's HR is faster than Bran's first ultrasound HR, 167 BPM.

Tiny little heartbeat. 167 BPM.

Grandma Roelle made a day trip to visit on Wednesday.  We put Bran in his big brother shirt after his morning nap to surprise her with the news.  We had a great day just hanging out.  We all went to Moe's for lunch before Joe had to go to work.  Grandma got to experience Bran's love of dipping.  Afterwards we took Bran to Amberleigh Park.  Bran was so brave on the big slide.  Grandma waited at the bottom to catch him and he rode down like a big boy on his butt and was pushing off to make himself go faster. Grandma also got to watch Bran's favorite movie, Sing!  He showed off all of his dance moves.

We decided to share our exciting news with family and close friends via text message over the last couple of days.  It makes it all feel much more real and exciting. I am not sure that anyone has been very surprised, they knew we wanted to add to our family. My sister Nicole had a couple hilarious conversations with Claire and Cameron while telling them about their new baby cousin.

Photo Ops: Bran continues to love sitting in/on everything!

7 Weeks

Baby is the size of a Micra Chameleon (up from a Ladybug last week!)

Last time we sized baby using fruit, this time we'll try animals.

New for baby this week? Baby has lost its' tail, has a heartbeat, a huge head (100 cells per minute in the brain), developing organs, and getting some limbs that look more like flippers at this point.

Total weight gain/loss? Even so far.

Maternity clothes? Hopefully not for awhile.
Stretch marks? No.
Sleep? A little sleepy.  Trying to sneak in some extra naps when I can.  Joe also let me sleep in a lot on our vacation while he got up with our early bird at 7.
Best moment this week? Yellow Springs
Miss Anything? Not really.
Movement? No.
Food cravings? No.  But plenty of food aversions.  Joe smoked a pork butt that was delicious.  But I couldn't even stand the smell after the first day. 
Anything making you queasy or sick? I have been very nauseous this pregnancy.  It comes in waves throughout the day.
Have you started to show yet? No.
Gender? Joe definitely does not want to find out.  I could be coaxed either way at this point.
Labor Signs? We have awhile.
Belly Button in or out? In. But it never went back to complete normal from pre Bran.
Wedding rings on or off? On.
How is mama feeling? Overall happy. A little tired and nauseous.
Looking forward to? Ultrasound next week.

I am quickly realizing it will be tough to keep up with this blogging like I did with my first pregnancy.  I am going to attempt weekly but it may turn into every other week, or sporadic. Who knows?!  I hope by more frequently blogging again I will remember more of the funny little moments that happen along the way, because those are the best to look back on!

What Have We Been Up To: (Since My Summer Part 1 Post)
We went to the state fair with The Blankenships.  I was pregnant at the time but didn't know it.  Bran and apparently Baby L2 (I need to come up with a better nickname, who has a good idea?!) both enjoyed the fair food.  Bran spent most of our time there wanting to push the stroller up and down the rows of the animal barns. 

Stealing Hailey's snacks.

Just a boy and his tractor.

Joe and I had this past week off together.  We had originally thought about doing a little weekend getaway with Jeremy and Nikki.  But after finding out I was pregnant we opted for more of a staycation.  The week flew by while we tried to work on a few things around the house, but we did get to enjoy a few adventures.  We have been wanting to go for awhile and finally made a trip over to Yellow Springs.  We went for a hike at Clifton Gorge.  Bran did great, although he was over riding in the backpack at the end. I think Daddy was getting pretty tired from carrying him too. After our hike we headed over to Young's Jersey Dairy Farm.  What a great family place! We had lunch outside at the picnic tables, played with the goats and cows, walked around the tractors, and finally enjoyed some homemade ice cream. Bran was really interested in the goats, and even said "eye!" while trying to poke one, whoops!

Family Selfie

Caterpillar

Later in the week Linda, Jeremy, Nikki, Greer, and Chris came to stay the night.  Jeremy and Nikki were the first ones to find out about our pregnancy news when we had to cancel our Put In Bay trip.  But we surprised Grandma by putting Bran in his new shirt to reveal the news.  Then Bran decided he wanted to wear Greer's shoes and pose for a picture for us, what a goofball!  We went to the zoo that afternoon, and had an adult night out while the Grandmas watched the kids. Greer and Bran also had a great time playing together in the sprinkler and having a picnic outside. Can't wait to add another little one to the mix with these two! 

Maybe this is a hint that Bran wants a sister?

Photo Ops:

All tucked in with his pillow, blankie, ducky, and sneetch.

This kid loves dipping! 

BITE!!!

Helping us reorganize furniture.

Loves corn on the cob. 

Getting ready for our hike.

Baby yoga.

Big boy. Little truck.

Sweaty mohawk.

Maybe I will fit on this tractor better?

Movie and snack with Mama.

Surprise!

Oh baby baby! Baby Lude number 2 is on the way.  I knew there was a small chance we could be pregnant but hadn't thought too much about it.  My period was already a few days late but this had not been uncommon since having Bran.  But deep down I think I just felt a little different.  As a matter of fact in hindsight I had had some spotting (which once again not unusual since having Bran) that must have been implantation bleeding. And my "period" symptoms were just a little more intense.  And the slight nauseated feeling lingering around was what really threw me.  Wednesday evening I mentioned to Joe I thought I could be pregnant, but was convinced as soon as I peed on a stick I'd start my period.  He suggested waiting until Friday or Saturday to take a test then if I was unsure. Thursday morning we were both getting up early to go to work.  After having to eat pretzels before going to bed Wednesday evening, I knew I needed to take a test.

Joe had already snoozed his alarm a couple times, so when the big "Pregnant" quickly popped up, I opened the door, waved the pregnancy test, and said so what do you think it says?!  To which his reply was "pregnant" and "wow that was fast".

So based on my last period I am officially 5 weeks pregnant today.  I called to make an appointment with my OB and we'll go in a couple weeks for an ultrasound (the same day Bran has his 18 month check up).  I feel calmer this time around because I know what we are getting into.  I also feel a little nervous because I know what we are getting into lol.  I am excited and sad for Bran to be a big brother all at the same time.  I just have a hard time wrapping my head around the fact that he won't be the baby anymore.  My last pregnancy flew by, and I feel like this one is going to go by even faster.  I am going to try to cherish this time, because in the blink of an eye everything will be different. I think I am most excited to feel baby kicks again!

OBX June 2017

Our big family vacation this summer was to the Outer Banks.  I was nervous about the drive but Bran did great.  We left around 3:30 a.m. on Saturday, and pulled Bran out of bed thinking he'd go right back to sleep in the car.  He spent the next two hours talking to us in the dark before finally deciding to nap.  We only stopped a couple times and when we did we just let Bran run around while we got food, then we all ate in the car.  When Bran wasn't napping I had to spend a decent amount of time in the backseat feeding him and just hanging out to keep him entertained.  We had downloaded a few movies on Joe's Kindle but Bran just wasn't that interested in watching anything for very long. But overall he was a great traveler.

We shared a house with Grandma and Grandpa Roelle, Aunt Renee, Uncle Aaron, Jaden, Grandma Lude, Uncle Jeremy, Aunt Nikki, Greer, and Chris. Although Greer and Bran seemed to be on opposite sleep schedules, they did have a lot of fun playing all week.  Bran loved sharing a house with so many of his favorite people.  He took full advantage of making sure he got all the extra "duck" (milk) and snacks he could.

Our first trip down to the beach Bran was a little unsure of the sand.  He kept saying "eww" when he would get sand on his hands. He was also a little intimidated by the water.

Monday we celebrated my 31st birthday.  I forgot to take any pictures but it was the perfect day.  I enjoyed sunshine, the beach, and good company all day.  My Mom made a big spaghetti dinner and ice cream cake for everyone (which Bran devoured both).  We topped off the day with a hilarious game of Cards Against Humanity after the kids went to spend.

Speaking of sleeping, Bran sure was an early bird on vacation.  We didn't have any curtains in our room so as soon as the sun was shining Bran was up and ready to go.  He was sleeping in a pack n play in our room, so he'd pop right up and say "hi!!!" to wake us up.  Grandma and Grandpa Roelle started taking him to the park bright and early every morning so he could play.

Our second visit to the beach was much more successful.  We started with water shoes on Bran to see if that would help the "eww sand" situation.  But he quickly warmed up to it and wanted the shoes off.  Bran ended up absolutely loving the beach the rest of the week.  His favorite thing to do was run up and down the beach saying hi to everyone that would listen (and even those who wouldn't).

Bran also stole his cousin Greer's Minnie Mouse chair.  Had I known how much he would love sitting there I would have packed his OSU one.  Oh well, next year! Bran really enjoyed people watching while enjoying a few snacks.

 We took Bran to our favorite seafood restaurant in the OBX, I've Got Your Crabs.  Bran loved everything he let him try, especially the crab and crab dip.  He ended up stealing some of our crab cracking utensils to eat his crab dip.  He thought it was way better than using an actual spoon.

 We also took Bran to the Outer Banks Children's Museum.  He loved running around and playing with all of the different exhibits.  He especially loved all of the workout equipment.

Bran loved having Daddy take him out to splash in the waves.  He is so brave.  He also liked splashing around in the little beach pool to keep cool.  Playing with the sand wasn't his favorite thing to do this year.

Aunt Renee taught Bran how to say turtle.

Mommy and Daddy had a night out! 

We had a pool at our house.  Bran was not very excited about it at the beginning of the week.  He mostly disliked that I couldn't just let him run around as freely as he did at the beach, We tried all different kinds of floats and he wasn't loving any of them. He finally ended up (briefly) liking one of Greer's. He did warm up to the pool as the week went on and he started to enjoy splashing and playing with everyone.

Jaden was Bran's absolute favorite person on vacation.  He learned how to say "Jaden" and was constantly looking for him and yelling his name.  He knew to look for him over on the couch. Bran got so excited when Jaden came with us down to the beach one afternoon and crawled right up into his lap.

Stealing Grandma's sweet tea.

 Swimming with Grandpa, snack time, and dancing by the pool.

Bran's little foot prints in the sand.

This is the best picture we managed to get with this crazy gang.

The week in the Outer Banks was very relaxing and fun.  What a big difference a year makes!  A year ago Bran was just learning to roll over on our beach vacation.  It was so much more fun this year to watch Bran play and explore.  He is getting so big. We are already looking forward to our next visit!