18 week Baby 2 update

I am 18 weeks now. I feel like I'm a week off or something...oh well!

No picture this week but I hope to get one up soon. I think the baby is the size of a bell pepper or some other veggie!

How far along?
         18 weeks
Maternity clothes?
         Pants yes unless they are stretchy and some tops but mostly non-maternity tops still
Stretch marks?
          none
Weight gained:
          total- 2lbs
Sleep:
       Decent...the baby is laying on my sciatica and my hip goes numb and then I am in horrible pain :(
Best moment this/last month:
        I think I felt the baby move, and getting some of my energy back!
Movement:
        A little (I think) When Clayton sits in my lap I feel some major pressure in my tummy...sibling rivalry already?
Food cravings:
         Fettucini Alfredo...seriously it is all I think about! Anything Peppermint but that might be the time of year not the baby :)
Gender:
         Hopefully we find out on the 13th of December
Labor Signs:
         None but I think this baby is sitting lower that Clayton did
Belly Button in or out?
          in
Wedding rings on or off?
         on...but causing a rash like they did with Clayton
What I miss:
          Honestly a nice glass of wine
What I am looking forward to:
          Finding out the gender!
Weekly Wisdom:
          Drink lots of water!
Milestones:
          Everyday with a pregnancy feels like a milestone...but I have not gotten "sick" in over a week so I              will say that.

16 week Dr OB appoinment

Last Thursday (11/18) I saw my Ob for my 16 week checkup and everything seemed great! She has done an ultrasound every other check up so I thought maybe this week would be the same and we could get a sneak peek of the "determining parts" but I guess we will wait until December 13. She found the heart beat right away and it was 132-148 which seemed low to me compared to Clayton but she seemed OK with it. We talked about my numb hip and the extreme nerve pain that comes with it. At night there are times that I wake Jason up just because I feel like someone needs to know that I am in that much pain. I can't really describe it and that makes it hard to talk to the Dr about it but I'm pretty sure that she got what I was saying. There are a few things that could be causing it...sciatica, a deviated uterus or simply where the baby is laying. He/she has been on the left side since the get go and so Dr told me lay on my right side instead of the normal left. Laying on my right seems to be helping but its still an aggravation.

The only concern she seemed to have was that I have only gained 1lb since my registration day and said that I was allowed to eat as much as I wanted. Of course I am trying to stick with healthy foods and snack all the time instead of large meals. But here is my thought...I was really sick at the beginning and lost a good bit of weight and so if I have gained 1 lb over my original date doesn't that actually mean I have gained back my weight plus 1? Anyway, I'm sure it will all work out in the end...it sure did with C!

I sorted out my maternity clothes from C and realized I didn't like them but I don't want to buy anything because we are already counting on this one to be our last (but God will make that decision!). But I do need some new pants. My normal pants even with the Bella band are VERY uncomfortable and my maternity are still too big and make me look awful on the bottom half! I heard that Old Navy was having a great sale today so I hoped on over Oldnavy.com and got some new shirts and pants, plus slippers and C got new PJs and matching slippers all for $50! I was pretty excited...I just wish they were coming before our trip to San Diego for Thanksgiving!

                                           Clayton has decided he has a baby in his tummy too!

Date night some pee pee and a little hot chocolate

In honor of Month of the Military Family Clayton's school offered a free Parent's Night Out. I was stoked at first but now that Clayton is moving foward with his potty training I was a little nervous that the new teachers and environment would mess him up but we decided to give a go anyway...and I'm glad we did but more on the potty training in a few. J and I went to the little theater on post and saw Secretariat. Loved it! While J was deployed I got into this show on the Animal Planet called Jockeys and it really showed me some of the behind the scenes of horse racing and now I love to follow horses and jockeys so this movie was right up my alley. Plus, duh J likes horses! After the movie we headed back to get C from school hoping that we would pick him up in the same clothes we dropped him off in...NOPE! 
I would not by any means say that Clayton is potty trained at all but he doing great! In the last week he is only wearing underwear and pullups at night...not that brave yet! And has had very few accidents, still trouble with #2 but getting there. The problem is C won't say he has to go we have to tell him about every hour that he needs to try and sure enough he goes everytime...and yes I have tested to see how long he can go and if he will tell me and it resulted in cleaning the carpet and washing mini undies. So...whe we dropped him off I explained ALL this to his teachers like 50 times no lie! I even had he normal Preschool teacher explain how important the everyhour thing is. When we got there he had on different pants and no socks and a big bag of clothes next in his cubby...umm! We got there at 9:15 and she said..."he had his last accident about 15 minutes ago". Did they take him to the potty at all? I know they ahd other children and they are not used to his schedule BUT I TOLD THEM 50 TIMES!!!! So I didn't get on to C but did use this as an opportunity to show him that he needs to tell people when he has to go...

I can drink this...really?

I told him to look into his cup and smile...this is the best we could do

Once we got home I was freezing and wanted something sweet...and I was given the go ahead to eat away from my OB (more on that in another post) so I decided to make some hot chocolate. C was still awake and of course wanted some...bad parenting I know! Give the toddler hot chocolate at 9:45 (smacking my hand!) HE LOVED IT! The marshmellows were multi colored and actually really fun...it's the little things!

Finally cought up!

I just posted a bunch of craft stuff that I had just hanging out in my sister blog waiting on me to push publish! Check 'em out :)

http://www.darlingdesignsbydanielle.blogspot.com/

Peppermint Twist

Ok I'm not sure how many people know this about me but I am a bit of a soap/lotion/hand soap snob. And I love the Holiday Traditions line from Bath and Body Works. This year I ordered the Winter Candy Apple, Vanilla Bean Noel and then I decided to try the Peppermint Twist. 

Once they all got here I smelled the Peppermint and wasn't sure if I loved it. But I put it in the shower and to try just incase.. I LOVE IT! So yeah I smell like a giant Candy Cane but I love candy canes!

It might not be everyones thing but I recommend it! Christmas is coming and I smell ready for it!

Clayton: 27 months old

 Clayton loves bounce houses!

Clayton is now 27 months and changing daily still. Lately, he has really started understanding us and making the choice when to listen and when to ignore. So he has also spent some quality time in time out :(

Eating: His eating has been a bit of a struggle and I feel for the parents who have always dealt with this because it is somewhat new to us. C has a HUGE sweet tooth and I can blame that on no one but ME! I need my coffee with creamer to get started and finish every meal with a desert. Monkey see Monkey do and I have tried to move my dessert time to after bedtime.

Another issue we are having with eating is when it should happen. Dinner specifically...Jason has the most random schedule there are nights he is home at 9 and nights he is home at 4 and I never know until the door opens when he is coming. So to try and have dinner as a family (the only time we are together) is hard and often times C gets so hungry he melts down and eats poorly. So I I read about and I think C is going to eat at 6 regardless of us and then if time permits sit with J and I eat a snack or milk so that he still gets the social/structure meal that he needs for development.

Sleeping: OH BOY! C was always one of those babies that would sleep ANYWHERE...not anymore. He will still sleep anywhere but not for long. He wants to sleep near someone. For weeks he was really struggling with sleeping in his own bed and I felt sorry for him but he needs his space and so do we. We asked ever night what the problem was and he always told us the wall...he didn't like the wall. Well I can't move the wall but I can move him. So we moved his bed so that now the head board is the only thing touching and it seems to be helping.

As far as napping C wants to skip it but there is no way. On days that is he doesn't nap or days that he only naps for a few minutes he can't make it to 8:30! He falls asleep at 5 and then gets up at 8 ready for a whole day...NO WAY! I know that a lot of his schedule is falling apart because of me being sick and laying around more often but I have so much more energy now and I hope that can get us back on track soon!

Potty Training:  Monday morning I went to change C and realized that we had one pull up left and maybe 3 diapers so I decided it was a sign to rip off the "pull up/diaper" band aid and just do it...so he wore underwear all day and only had one accident all day including a nap time...until J came home. And then there were 3 accidents. I think it has to do with both of being a little more relaxed on watching him because we are assuming the other one is doing the job...must work on that! But on Thursday he starts wearing underwear to school...HELLO I am super nervous about it but his teachers seem perfectly OK with it so why not give it a shot right?

Learning: We recently had a conference with C's teacher and overall he got great scores/comments but there were a few things he needs to work on. And I talked to her about some activities we can do at home. I feel like we are doing the same activities over and over. She suggested some websites and books so I am in the process of getting that together and hopefully adding some "spice" to our day...frankly I am bored and lately he has been acting a little crazy so I think he might be bored too.

Overall C is a great kid and I am trying to spend as much time as possible before the little one gets here and C is too old to want to hang out with me anymore :(

Sorry for the wordy post there are some good picture ones coming up I hope!

16 weeks...a plum

How far along?
        16 weeks
Maternity clothes?
         Half and Half
Stretch marks?
          none
Weight gained:
          2 lbs maybe...I have been really sick!
Sleep:
         Decent...the baby is laying on my sciatica and my hip goes numb and then I am in horrible pain :(
Best moment this/last month:
          I think I felt the baby move, and getting some of my energy back!
Movement:
          A little (I think) When Clayton sits in my lap I feel some major pressure in my tummy...sibling rivalry already?
Food cravings:
           Sweets, fruity stuff and ice
Gender:
           we don't know yet but I think it is a boy!
Labor Signs:
            nope
Belly Button in or out?
             in
Wedding rings on or off?
             on
What I miss:
             Wearing normal pants and not having to unbutton them when I sit down!
What I am looking forward to:
             Finding out the gender and hearing the heartbeat this upcoming Thursday
Weekly Wisdom:
              Rest when I can and not overdo it
Milestones:
             Reaching the 16 week just seems big. 12 was great but for some reason 16 seems more concrete!