HALFWAY there! I can’t believe it! In a way, it’s gone by so fast, but at times, still having 4.5 months to go sounds like forever. I know she’ll be here before we know it, though!Baby’s size: 10 inches long from head to toe and weighing about 10.6 ounces! This is the same size as a paper airplane or a Belgian endive.
Maternity clothes?: Not yet! My regular shorts were always a little loose pre-pregnancy, so they are still feeling comfortable for now.
Gender: It’s a GIRL! It’s a GIRL! It’s a GIRL! Can you tell that we’re excited for another little princess? If you’re wondering, our 15-week scan was right about her gender… I’m just relieved to have it confirmed and be able to share the news!
Symptoms: Feeling SO great this week! No complaints.
Sleep: Generally good, just never enough hours! But that’s nothing new. 🙂
Movement: This little Pumpkin is a night owl for sure! I feel her the very most late at night, usually a couple of hours before bed… and when I wake up in the morning, I’m still aware of her fluttering around. She’s getting stronger, and I almost thought I’d be able to see her moving from the outside of my belly… but no luck so far. Michael hasn’t felt her yet, either.
Cravings: Chocolate-chip cookies!
What I miss: Nothing really.
Anything making you queasy or sick?: Nothing seemed too disgusting to me this week, haha.
Belly Button in or out?: In.
Exercising?: Ran 21.5 miles; walked another 5.6 miles. As far as steps, my Fitbit says I totaled 90,266 for the week. I’ve really been feeling great as far as exercising goes.
Mood: Joyful. It’s been a great week.
Best moment this week: Seeing our healthy baby girl’s ultrasound this week. We saw tiny fingers, tiny toes, and even her little nose! Seriously… how cute is her foot?Looking forward to: Hopefully having some more great weather this week and enjoying time outside with my babies.
Comparison: 20 weeks with Kaya; 20 weeks with Kaelyn

It’s finally official!

We’re having another sweet baby GIRL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!We are so grateful for another healthy little princess! The ultrasound technician called her “a wiggle worm” and “very active”- just like I’ve already noticed! We ended up with a few great profile shots of her- I just can’t get over that tiny nose and those precious lips. Only a few more months until I can cover them with kisses!
Before we started our family, I never would have imagined having so many girls, all in a row… but I absolutely love it now! I had strong feelings that this baby was a girl, and Kaya did too- she would even get grumpy when we would tell her (before we knew the gender) that she could have been getting a little brother. She was adamant about having another sister- and she was right!I’m excited to see the bond this baby girl will share with her two older sisters, and the joy she will add to our family. She is already so loved.

Today is our anatomy scan! Although we have already had an early scan and been told a gender, I’ve been waiting for this ultrasound to (hopefully) confirm it before we announce anything. 20 weeks is when it truly feels official to me!

I’m also excited to get another peek at this sweet baby!

Just like last time, I thought it would be fun to post some of the old wives’ tales for gender prediction. Here we go!

Baby’s heart rate: Over 140 bpm – GIRL
Morning sickness: Yes – GIRL
Chinese gender predictor: GIRL
Sweet or salty cravings? Sweet – GIRL
Are you more emotional? Yes – GIRL
More or fewer face breakouts? More – GIRL
Carrying high or low? Low – BOY
Dry hands or soft? Dry – BOY
Dreams: I’ve had dreams about both… but I think I’ve had more about a baby GIRL than a boy.
Mother’s early intuition: GIRL
Big sister’s guess: Kaya has absolutely insisted that we would have another baby GIRL since before we were pregnant.

I can’t wait to share!

Baby’s size: 6 inches long (CRL), weighing about 8.5 ounces. This is the same size as a zucchini, a hedgehog, or an old-school Gameboy!
Maternity clothes?: No, but I’ve moved on to using the hair-tie trick for keeping my jeans buttoned… Thankfully, it’s warming up, which means I can wear my shorts!
Gender: Only a few more days until we see for sure… Oh the anticipation!
Symptoms: I’ve just been feeling a bit sick this week without any concrete reason as to why. I know I had a sinus infection and some allergies at the start of the week, but otherwise I’m just feeling wiped out.
Sleep: Generally good, just never enough hours! But that’s nothing new. 🙂
Movement: I can feel baby squirming in there just about every day… especially when I’m lying down. We had a few big kicks this week again, but they’re still somewhat rare.
Cravings: Nutella… nutella… and nutella.
What I miss: Nothing really.
Anything making you queasy or sick?: Nausea has come back in these past couple of days… and I hope it’s not here to stay. I feel nauseous before I eat, after I eat… it doesn’t seem to matter. The same old things are turning my stomach (Greek yogurt, Goldfish crackers, and Italian dressing).
Belly Button in or out?: In.
Exercising?: About 20 miles of running total. I’m really starting to feel that little basketball I’m carrying around when I’m running now… and baby loves to sit right on my bladder, so no matter how many times I use the bathroom before I leave, I always feel like I need to go again before I even hit half a mile. Crazy!
Mood: Crying happy tears at everything… Tim McGraw songs, Kaya asking me for a kiss before I left for Young Women’s this week, and just realizing how fast my babies are growing up have all cued the water works.
Best moment this week: Spending time playing outside with my kids and soaking in the sunshine!
Looking forward to: Our ultrasound next week!
Comparison: 19 weeks with Kaya; 19 weeks with Kaelyn

(written May 21st… a few days late, since we were out of town! 🙂 )Baby’s size: About 5.5 inches long from head to rump, and weighing in at around 7 ounces! Apparently, this is about the same size as a sweet potato… or according to the Ovia app, also a sugar glider, a slingshot, or a croissant. Haha.
Maternity clothes?: All regular clothes still! I do choose shorts over my jeans though whenever I can- the jeans still button, but they are definitely less comfortable.
Gender: We are pretty sure we know… but we’re waiting to announce at 20 weeks, after confirming it at our anatomy scan! I seriously cannot wait to share!
Symptoms: A very crampy belly while we were on vacation this week… probably just due to sitting in the car for so many hours and not being diligent about drinking enough water. I also think it’s partly just growing pains!
Sleep: Restless this week while on vacation and sleeping somewhere other than home, but normally, I’ve been sleeping pretty soundly and getting up to use the bathroom only once at night.
Movement: I felt a few kicks this week that were so much stronger than anything I’ve felt so far! I think this baby is going to be a crazy mover like Kaya was. Baby also starts moving a whole lot after I have something cold, like water or ice cream.
Cravings: Greek gyros and Nutella… I know, so bad, but SO good!
What I miss: Sometimes I miss feeling like I look fit… my belly is in that awkward “did she eat too many donuts?” stage, and even though I’m grateful we have an obviously-growing baby in there, it can be hard to see all your physical fitness going downhill. I also just feel like I’m showing a lot earlier this time… but I guess that’s to be expected with baby #3!Anything making you queasy or sick?: Greek yogurt and Italian vinaigrette still smell so disgusting to me… But as long as I’m not eating them (and believe me, I’m not, just serving them to the kids), I’m alright.
Belly Button in or out?: In.
Exercising?: I started the week out with a cold… and then we were on vacation, and I forgot my GPS watch. So I’m not exactly sure on the number, but I still ended up running about 20 miles or so.
Mood: Happy!
Best moment this week: Going on our family beach vacation!
Comparison: 18 weeks with Kaya; 18 weeks with Kaelyn

I thought it’d be fun to answer some of the most common questions we’ve been getting this time around… and just do one big update! I’m also just so excited that it’s our turn to do all this again! 🙂

To start, we’ve nicknamed this baby “Pumpkin”… because what better moniker is there for an October baby? (Remember how Kaya was “Munchkin” and Kaelyn was “Peanut”?). I love having something to call the baby other than “It” for the first little while, and Pumpkin seemed to fit perfectly.

Have you felt any different this time around?
Not at all! It’s actually kind of crazy how eerily similar this pregnancy is to my other two- especially my first. Exhaustion and morning sickness sum up my first trimester really well every time, but otherwise, I’ve been feeling good.

Do Kaya and Kaelyn know about the pregnancy?
Kaelyn is oblivious, and I’m guessing she’ll stay that way until either my belly is huge or we bring the baby home. Kaya, on the the other hand, definitely understands that there is “just a little baby” in my tummy, and is SO excited! She kisses, hugs, sings to, and just cuddles up to my belly all the time. This baby has already brought her so much happiness. I just know my heart is going to explode with emotion the first time I see her hold her new sibling.

How far apart will the kids be?
Kaya turns 4 just a few weeks before this one is due, and Kaelyn will be 27 months. I would have had them just as close as my first two (21 months apart), but it took a little longer to get pregnant this time (about 8 months). When it comes down to it, I have faith in God’s timing, and I’m actually really happy to have another Fall baby. (here’s our first ultrasound at 10 weeks!)

Any morning sickness?
YES. I’ve had more of the “all-day-long” morning sickness this time around (just like with Kaya), and spent a whole lot of time on the couch in the first trimester. I started feeling a lot better just before the second trimester began.

I barely tried to cook real meals during those tougher weeks, just because I knew that most foods and smells would set off my nausea. Thankfully, Michael really is the best and took over making sure dishes got done and some kind of food was on the table for the kids. It’s a good thing they’re all happy with just PB&Js or pizza.

Aversions:
Chicken, cheese, Greek yogurt, beans, and Italian salad dressing have been big aversions for me this time. I also didn’t eat a chocolate chip cookie for about 2 months… that’s practically eternity for me!

Cravings:
I’ve noticed that I crave real fruit or fruity-flavored things this time. I actually started sucking on Kaya’s Dumdum lollipops when I would feel nauseous, and it seemed to help. Donuts, brownies, pizza, Chinese food, and Subway subs were most of the things my stomach could handle when I felt my sickest.

Are we going to find out the gender?
Confession: We actually went and found out the gender EARLY (at 15 weeks) this time! However, I am waiting until we have it confirmed at our 20-week anatomy scan before we make an official announcement. 🙂 Many people automatically assume we want a boy after already having two girls… but I can honestly say, we would be overjoyed with either a prince or princess. We are just very grateful for this little baby.

Have you felt movement yet?
This little person has been very active at both of our ultrasounds… and seemed to have some pretty serious hiccups at the 10-week one! I’ve been feeling flutters since 13 weeks, and I’m pretty sure it’s those little legs kicking! I almost always feel it on my right side.

Have you still been running?
Yes! I’m actually really proud to say that with this pregnancy (so far), this is the best I’ve done with keeping up with my desired mileage! I am already a lot slower (10-minute miles on average, unless I have a running buddy to keep me going), but I’m doing what feels good and stopping for water and bathroom breaks if I go more than 6 miles. I was blessed to be able to run up until delivery with my other two, and I’m so hoping it goes that way again!

Pumpkin, you are so wanted, prayed for, and loved. Only about 5 more months until we meet you!

We’re so happy to finally announce…

Baby #3 is due in October!!!

As you can see, we (especially Kaya) couldn’t be more excited! I’m already 17 weeks along, and the time is just flying by!

Hopefully I’ll be able to start some weekly updates soon, and post about some other fun details too, like how we announced it to our families this time! 🙂

Happy Friday all! 🙂