100 days!

It has been WAY too long since I blogged and I feel like with how fast all of this baby stuff is coming and going I should be documenting it in some way so later when I look back on my pregnancy, I remember how things actually were and not just the way that my brain with romanticize it (which is usually what happens).

So first of all. I am so excited to have only 100 DAYS LEFT!!! Can you even believe how fast this is going. I am almost in my third trimester and I am 26 weeks ish (technically not until Wednesday but every time she has been measuring a few days ahead so in my brain, my weeks start on Monday). My belly is growing like crazy and I am starting to feel the aches and pains of pregnancy. My back hurts...a LOT! Even when I lay down, it still just hurts. I don't know if it's the way I am carrying this little bundle of joy or if my body is just not used to carrying this much weight around, I don't know. But still, that is such a tiny thing compared to some of the horror stories I have heard so I am counting my blessings. I also have been eating like a mad woman. I know that is probably bad, but I don't eat a lot at once, I just feel like eating ALL day long... I try to eat some healthy foods, but really, even my healthy foods aren't that healthy. (aka: strawberries, apples, chocolate milk, carrots *with ranch*). Really though, I am pretty proud of the way that my body is handling the weight gain and my new voluptuous figure. I have mostly just gained weight in my tummy (and apparently  a little in my butt according to my mother). I still fit in my shoes, most of my clothes, and am still wearing my wedding ring. I have had a couple of sick days where I just have been....sick. Luckily, I have my amazing husband who will rub my back until I fall asleep when I wake up in the night with a stomach ache or will get me anything I need. He seriously is the best. I don't know what I would do without him. I have had so much more energy lately as well. I just want to be outside, be doing things, be with people, and be more active. This is a very good thing! Except that I don't usually have a car to go do things or people to do them with. This leaves me at home often just wishing that I had somewhere to go. Hopefully once summer starts, some of my friends will be less busy and can hang out with me a little bit more.

The baby is SO ACTIVE. I don't think she ever sleeps!! (except when I am trying to take a video of my stomach moving when she kicks...then she seems to settle down. camera shy? already???). It's starting to get to the point where it doesn't just feel like a little kick anymore...it actually feels like an elbow or a foot or something pushing and moving around inside of me. More than once she will move right on my hand or arm and I actually will pull my arm away because it startles me. I love it....but it grosses me out sometimes Like....there is a human living inside of me, kicking, flipping, punching....and in just 100 days she will be outside of me. It's a lot to take in!!!  I love that she moves so much though. For a long time, I was always so nervous that something was wrong because I wasn't feeling sick anymore but I wasn't feeling her move yet. I just had to hope and pray that everything is ok. Now, I know. I know everything is ok because she lets me know regularly! This is such a blessing and I am so grateful. I have had a couple of people recently who have gotten some really bad news and I am just so grateful that my little baby is ok. My heart and prayers go out to those who have ever had to receive bad news or who have gone through something that no mother should ever have to go through. I hope that I never have to go through that.

On a happier note. I get to go to the doctor on Wednesday! I never thought I would say these words, but I LOVE going to the doctor! I love to hear my baby's heartbeat, to hear that she is growing at the right pace and is right on track, and to know that I am doing fine as well. It is such a bright spot in my month. I look forward to it! I can't wait until/if I get another ultrasound! I have a friend who is in OB school and has offered to give me a free ultrasound at her school if I want to come in! I really want to. The only problem is her hours are very limited and I usually don't have a car. If I do have a car, I am usually busy all afternoon babysitting. I might just have to wait a bit longer. I figured that the best way to show you all (the maybe 4 people that read my blog) how my pregnancy has been going is to just show how quickly my tummy has gotten big.

15 weeks....back when I thought I was getting a belly. HA!

18 weeks

21 weeks. I must have been full that day or something because it seems like it gets smaller into week 22...

22 weeks

23 weeks

24 weeks (This shirt is my favorite pregnancy buy...besides the maternity pants)

25 weeks and only getting bigger!

Thanks for reading this if you do! It's mostly just my journal, but I love letting people know what is going on with my life! People keep asking me if we have a name picked out yet...and we have a couple that are tentative, but we are not setting it in stone until she is born. So far they are Rylee and Reagan. We like them both and can't really fully decide yet.

My favorite comment that people have made so far has been, "Aww, you have a belly!" To which I respond in my brain, "Yep! Always have! Look! You have one too!" hahah
The one I have not loved keeps coming from my 13 year old sister. "You're getting big Chels." I know I'm getting big! And I don't even really feel that self conscious about it, it just bugs me that she says it every time she sees me. One other funny moment. My 18 year old sister was talking to one of her friends and was showing her some of my belly pictures and decided that my belly got big really fast. She shows me the pictures from the yellow shirt to the second blue one and says, "Look! In TWO weeks! It's huge! TWO weeks!!" to which I responded, "Yeah...I know!" It's like she didn't think I noticed that this thing under my boobs has been protruding at an alarming rate! haha I really love being pregnant though and all of these funny comments make it even better :).

 I have two friends that are pregnant too that I hang out with regularly. One is due on May 31. She is 10 weeks minus a day ahead of me. Then there is me. Then there is my other friend who is due in October (I can't remember the exact date) and she is 10 weeks behind me! (She is having her 2nd though). It's fun when we all hang out because we are all going through the same things and all like to talk about it. One friend's husband made a comment at a game night we had last weekend that they should start a reality TV show called "All our wives are pregnant" or something to that effect! It could be a hit don't you think?? :)

Our Date to the Zoo

Call me crazy, call me immature, but I SERIOUSLY love going to the zoo. It is one of my favorite things to do! I have been there so many times and it is always the same animals but I think it is so much fun. In the past few weeks I have really wanted to be outside a lot. I don't feel like sitting on my butt and doing nothing. I have been trying to find someone to go the zoo with me and nobody ever has the time or wants to. Today Spencer and I had nothing planned. We were going to just spend the day together. I made a joke and said, "Let's go to the zoo!" A few minutes later, Spencer says to me, "Ok let's go to the zoo". I said, "You don't want to go to the zoo...." to which he replies, "Yeah, I just looked it up online, let's go!" So we got ready and we went to the zoo!! Oh man, I was so happy all morning while we were getting ready and stuff.....I just kept saying over and over, "WE'RE GOING TO THE ZOO!! WE'RE GOING TO THE ZOO!!" haha

We didn't get to the zoo until about 1:00 in the afternoon which gave us about 4 hours until it closed. I thought that wasn't that much time since every time I have gone with little kids, that time gives you about half of the zoo. Well we got to see EVERYTHING! It was awesome! We could sit down whenever we wanted, we weren't worried about kids needing naps or being grouchy, we could keep walking all we wanted and it was so much fun! I'm glad we got to go together once before we have the baby.

When we were getting to the zoo, we see a sign that says 'ZOO PARKING IS FULL: FREE PARKING AT THE MUNI'. Well. That free parking was almost half a mile away from the zoo. We went over and found a spot and then we decided... 'the parking lot can't be full ALL DAY, let's just go check'. We got to the zoo parking lot and we found a spot less than 10 spaces from the front in the 5th row from the front gate. SCORE! I was so happy. I knew that after a full day of walking at the zoo that I would not want to walk another half mile to the car.

We went and saw all the animals, held hands, and seriously just had the funnest time! We also got to do some things that we had never been able to do before. When either of us has ever gone to the zoo before, there have been lots of other kids with us and stuff so we never got to do all of the extra cool stuff there is to do. Spencer and I decided to feed the giraffes! That was seriously so cool!!! They have the longest tongues and the one that we fed was 15 feet tall and not even full grown yet. We got to take pictures with them and ask lots of questions.

Fun fact: did you know that when a giraffe is born it is 6 ft tall and weighs 150 lbs?? Can you imagine lugging that thing around?? HOLY GUACAMOLE!! Yeah. It was a really really fun thing neither one of us had ever been able to do. We also got to pet stingrays. I had actually done this before but Spencer never had. He loved it! He even got splashed! Apparently even sting rays have a limit for how long they like to be touched!

 Spencer tested that limit...ha. It was a really really fun day and I'm so glad that I got to spend it with my best friend in the whole entire world.

Here are some of the pictures we took. I know it's just animals, but I was pretty proud of how cool of shots I got with barely being able to see what my camera was doing because it was so bright outside!

Spencer found his "bro" or "homie"....he's a little odd.

Spencer said there was a bird behind me so he wanted to get it in the picture too...I don't see a bird...

We loved going in the monkey village!! Spencer had never been in there before! There was a monkey who climbed on a rope right above us, stopped RIGHT over my head...and sneezed on me! Funny monkey!

At one of our breaks. He was making funny faces but then people walked up so he decided to pretend to be normal ;)

This is the giraffe we fed. Her name is Zuri and she is the tallest one at the zoo

Ok. These birds are seriously the funniest birds I have ever seen in my entire life. They just  sit there and groom themselves the entire day!!! They also twist their necks up into an almost knot and then just leave their head back on their back! And you know how most flamingos stand on one leg and tuck the other leg up underneath them? Well THESE ones only tuck half of their leg up under them and the rest of it hangs down right from their butt. Yeah. I was so amused. They were probably my favorite part of the zoo besides the giraffes. We spent at least 20 minutes there just staring at them and laughing :)

Spencer doing the flamingo pose: head on back, foot coming out of butt.

These were the scariest creatures we saw today. They just kept circling their little area, coming really close up to the fence, and just being downright frightening. I would NEVER want to see one of these out of captivity....

Spencer and I came out of this day without so much as a scratch! Not even a sunburn! That's right people...we sunscreened! OH! And we bought our sweet baby girl her first souvenir!

Happy Birthday!!

Today is one of my favorite people's birthday! MY GRANDMA!! 

She is pretty much one of my best friends and I know...that sounds funny. I always have to explain to people when I say I am going to hang out with my grandma or am spending time with my husband at my grandma's house that she's not like most grandmas....she's a COOL grandma!! She has more spunk and life than any  grandma I have ever met! She hangs out with me, shops with me (usually I am ready to go home before she is), eats food with me, does puzzles with me, does yoga with me (well ok....that was only like once), laughs with me, and so much more!! Since I got married and moved closer to her, we have been so much closer. I see her at least once a week if not more! So far this week, I have seen her Today, yesterday, Tuesday, and Monday...so yeah...every day! I am so glad to live so close to her and be able to spend so much time with her. Last night I was thinking about what I should get my awesome grandma for her birthday. I came up with a big fat nothing! What do you get someone that you see so often and that you do stuff with all the time. I ended up with a better idea than a gift. I decided I wanted to heart attack her house. She was out to dinner with her friends last night so Spencer and I made up a TON of hearts and headed over there. We hung them up all over her kitchen, living room, dining room, and even some in her bedroom. It was so fun and I was so excited for her to get home and see it! Why is it that doing stuff for people makes you feel so good??? It was seriously all I could think about until I fell asleep last night, and then again first thing this morning! I love my grandma so much and I don't know what I would do without her. She is pretty much the only person (besides my husband and my sister) that thinks I am as funny as I really am and that will laugh at almost every single one of my jokes! She has amazing fashion sense, can sew amazingly, is ok at puzzles ;), and makes me happy to be alive!!! :) I took pictures of her house with hearts all over but they are on my phone and hard to get onto here...plus not that great of quality. Just imagine paper hearts...everywhere!

This morning she gave me a call and thanked me for the hearts. We ended up going to breakfast (at 10:30) so she could get her free food and then ran to the mall to find me a cute swimsuit. I ended up finding an actual maternity one for as much as a top cost at walmart. THAT'S WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT. It's super cute and I'm really happy to have a comfortable swimsuit. And I even think I will be able to wear it if I'm not pregnant so DOUBLE SCORE!!

Anyways. I just love my grandma to bits! :)