I tried to post my usual pregnancy update over the weekend, but my blog decided it wouldn’t upload any photos. So here I am posting a life update + goals post all in one. We’ll just pretend like this is what I do every week! 😉
30 weeks!! And I can honestly barely believe it!!
Highlights
We now officially have all the basics for the baby (clothes, diapers/wipes, bed, carrier, car seat, and stroller). And now I’m working on collecting postpartum stuff for me (what are your faves to have on hand for recovery?)
We went ahead and set up the bed in our room this past week and it’s the craziest thing to see it there. (We plan for baby to sleep in our room in a bassinet pack-n-play for at least the first few months — but we’ll see how that goes and are open to tweak our plans if that doesn’t work out well.)
Notable
I had another appointment with the OB and everything continues to look great and baby is right on track! I have two more two-week appointments and then we’ll start weekly appointments where they’ll be doing in-depth ultrasounds to make sure everything looks good (because have a tiny bit of higher risks near the end of pregnancy due to my age).
I’m so grateful that I’m still feeling so well despite being this far into my pregnancy. I was usually pretty miserable at this point with my other pregnancies and really struggling to sleep, get comfortable, etc. I feel like the consistency with daily exercise, being super careful about what I’m eating, choosing an attitude of gratitude, really being vigilant about my iron intake, staying busy while also making sure I’m having a good balance of rest and downtime is making such a difference for me.
As Jesse was saying earlier, “This is by far the best pregnancy you’ve ever had!”
I have noticed I’m definitely needing more naps/sleep these days. I usually feel GREAT with 7 hours of sleep, but I’ve been needing at least 8+ hours of sleep the past two weeks to feel rested. So I’ve been trying to sneak in 1-2 short naps throughout the day and that’s made a big difference. (This is when it’s such a blessing that I work from home!)
In other news, as most of you know, I’m currently working on writing a book that is due to my publisher the beginning of July. I set a goal to have the rough draft completely done by April 15 and I’m thrilled to say that I’m on track with my goal!! And I can’t wait to share more about it!!
These two came home from school one day last week to discover that Kaitlynn and I had set the baby bed up (she was home since she hadn’t been fever-free for 24 hours). And I think this whole, “we’re actually having a baby!!” just got really, real to all of us.
It’s hard to describe how surreal all of this is when you had waited and hoped and tried for years, then grieved the devastating loss of being told you’d never being able to have more kids, and finally truly moving to a place of peace and contentment with our family of five.
And now there’s a 30-week-old baby kicking and hiccuping up a storm in my belly, we’re setting up the baby bed, buying baby clothes & diapers, talking about our birth plan, and I’m prepping for maternity leave.
Truly, God is in the business of doing exceedingly abundantly above anything we could ever dream or imagine! I don’t know what the future holds for our family or this child, but I will say that I can’t imagine any child being more wanted or loved or looked forward to.
Also, getting to share this journey with three older kids who are crazy excited about it has been one of the best parts of it all.
Thank you to everyone of you who has been part of this journey, too. It has been humbling to hear from so many of you — many whom I don’t even know! — who have been praying for me, this pregnancy, and this baby. It means the world to me!
I told the kids they had to wait to start counting down to the birth until I got 30 weeks. Welp, here we are. And the countdown is on!!
Note: I know that my sharing of our pregnancy has been very painful for some of you and I just want you to know that if you are grieving a loss or deeply wishing or longing for a child, you are not forgotten. I think of you so, so often. And I would be honored to take time to pray for you today.
One of the hardest parts of this journey has been seeing multiple friends of mine experience loss in recent months. I want you to know that my heart hurts deeply for you.
If you are experiencing infertility or loss and your heart is grieving, I would be honored to stop and pray for you by name today. Just message me or leave me a comment. You don’t need to share details, just ask for prayer and let me know your name.
In other news, Kathrynne’s basketball team took home the Championship win at the Varsity basketball championships last week!!
This was Kathrynne’s first year to play on Varsity and it’s been so fun to see her work so hard, build a lot of confidence, and improve so much over the course of the year.
One of my favorite parts of her being on the basketball team is the relationships she’s building with these amazing girls!
Here’s how I did on my goals last week:
Last Week’s Goals: 2020– Week 7
Personal Goals
1. Get in 54,000 steps total. (I use the FitBit Ulta HR to track my steps every day.)
2. Read Raising Worry-Free Girls, I Choose Brave, and Get Your Life Back. Listen to Things You Save in a Fire. (I stopped listening to this one because it felt like it was just going to be too “fluffy” and didn’t have enough depth for me.)
3. Go to bed by 10:30 p.m. Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday.
Home/Family Goals
4. Read 30 more pages of Carry a Big Stick aloud as a family.
5. Clean and disinfect the house from flu germs (as soon as the kids are fever-free!).
Work/Blog Goals
6. Finish the rough draft of chapter 5 of my manuscript.
Word of the Year Goals
7. Pop popcorn and watch another classic movie as a family. (We did watch YouTube videos together — does that count??)
8. Go out to dinner with Jesse. (If everyone is well!)
I’m keeping this week’s goals really simple because we are potentially getting a longterm foster placement this week and I want to leave a lot of space open for that. There’s a lot up in the air and it might not pan out, but I want to be prepared if it does.
This Week’s Goals: 2020 — Week 8
Personal Goals
1. Get in 54,000 steps total. (I use the FitBit Ulta HR to track my steps every day.)
2. Finish reading Love Idol and Don’t Overthink It. Finish listening to Good Leaders Ask Great Questions.
Home/Family Goals
3. Read 30 more pages of Carry a Big Stick aloud as a family.
4. Get a breast pump (I need to research whether our insurance provides this or not.)
Work/Blog Goals
5. Finish the rough draft of chapter 5 of my manuscript.
Word of the Year Goals
6. Pop popcorn and watch another classic movie as a family.
What are YOUR goals for this week? How did you do on last week’s goals? Tell us in the comments!
