Budget Busy Boxes

Being an professional pinner on Pinterest, I've seen information about "busy bags" often. Fill plastic baggies with one activity each and *boom* you have hours of entertainment for your little ones. In preparing for one of our recent road trips (we travel way too often), I realized I needed something along the lines of busy bags, but I didn't want to bother with several bags of activities. Plus I needed to include some other road trip essentials. I decided I could make busy BOXES and do it on a budget. I made one for Tyler (3) and figured I should make one each for my niece (7) and nephew (3) as well. For all three I managed to get by with spending under $20. Here's what I did:

The boxes I filled were old wipes containers... might as well not waste them! Then I filled them with snacks like peanut butter crackers, fruit snacks, and trail mix in plastic bags. I got some from the Dollar Tree and used some of what I had in the cupboard since I needed to use that stuff up anyway. There's nothing more grumpy than a hungry toddler, plus each snack will buy you about 10 minutes of "are we there yet"-free travel time.

Then I made a snack necklace kit to include in the box. I filled a plastic bag with foods with holes in them (pretzels, fruit loops, lifesavers gummies, etc). I also included chocolate covered pretzels, but for a summer road trip, I'd skip them haha. I pre-cut a piece of string and had Tyler string the snacks onto the string. I tied it around his neck and then he could snack! This kept him busy for a good 20 minutes.

I included some antibacterial wipes as well. The Dollar Tree has a 3 pack of 10 count Disney Pixar themed wipes which worked perfectly for the 3 kids. Those didn't buy me anytime, but I was definitely happy to have them after I realized what a terrible idea chocolate covered pretzels were in July.

I also put some stickers in the box so they could decorate the box (or themselves).

Finally I put together an on-the-road scavenger hunt list for each child and included it in the box. The items on the list were easy to spot things such as a McDonalds, a green sign (sort of a freebie for the little ones), a camper, a blue truck and so forth. For each item they found, they could pick a ticket which said either "toy" or "candy," without looking of course. Then they could trade in their tickets for candy (small things like Hershey kisses or lifesavers... some leftovers from Easter haha) or a toy (little things from the Dollar Tree that worked as entertainment as well like glow sticks, rubber band bracelet kits, coloring books, etc). Between the actual hunt and the entertainment from the prizes, I'd say I got an hour of distraction from this activity.

And the price breakdown for what I spent on my busy boxes (for 3 boxes):

Wipe boxes: free (thanks to my mommy friends!)
Snacks: $2
Necklace snacks: $5
String: free (I had it in my craft supplies)
Scavenger hunt prizes: $5
Scavenger hunt candy: free (we had a lot on hand)
Stickers: $3
Wipes: $1

$16 for about 2 hours of entertainment? I'll take that any day!

Salt Dough Prints

Yesterday I had the pleasure of watching my adorable little niece (well, technically she's not my niece, but it is much easier than saying my "husband's cousin's daughter"), so I had to come up with something to entertain three little ones under three. A couple years back, Tyler and I made a salt dough handprint for Jordon for Father's Day and I had meant to make one with Juliana's handprint for Father's Day this year, but the whole two-kid thing has totally made things crazier and sometimes my plans don't happen.

I figured we could mix up a whole batch of the dough, which Tyler would enjoy, and make prints with both girls' hands. As expected, Tyler loved mixing the dough up... not so expected was his entertainment from burying some of his action figures in the dough (my motto... pick your battles). I split the dough that wasn't covering Captain America and friends in half, made circles (MUCH harder than you'd think), then got the girls to press their hands down for a print (also MUCH harder than you'd think!). They baked for awhile and ta-da! pretty prints! Then I spent an hour sweeping all the excess flour and salt from not only the kitchen, but the rest of the house where the kids tracked it. Nothing new in the Robinson household.

Here's the recipe (for two plaques):

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup salt
1/2 cup warm water

- Mix ingredients (by hand is the most enjoyable and efficient way to do this)

- Shape into two circles (I press them into the bottom of a bowl, pull them out and then adjust as needed).

- Press hand (or foot) to make a print and write name/date (I used a toothpick) if desired

- Bake at 200 degrees F for 3 hours on non-stick cookie sheet

- Use plastic spatula to pull up plaque and let cool on cooling rack

Overall I'd say a pretty successful afternoon!

32 Weeks

Although I'm sure it's not as exciting for ya'll to read, I am happy to report that I am finally back to my boring old update blogs rather than anything out of the ordinary like the previous two weeks. Heck, I'll take a boring pregnancy any day over the craziness Jordon and I went through the past couple weeks!

Anyways, I'm officially 32 weeks pregnant, and definitely feeling it! First of all, I'm hot ALL the time. My darling husband was kind enough to go on a 5-store search for the perfect (cheap) inflatable baby pool so I could have a way to cool off on these unbearably hot days we've been having. I almost got an awesome blue whale pool that connects to a hose and sprays water (because it was the cheapest one we'd seen), but after a quick trip to Wal-Mart we were able to successfully purchase a bright green baby pool for $10 that is just big enough that I can lay down all the way in it. Best investment ever. I've also been in all sorts of pain recently. My back just kills all the time, no matter the position I'm in and my legs and joints have been aching a ton too. Despite the fact that I haven't gained much weight, I guess it is all located in the perfect position to stress my body out haha.

I had my biweekly check-up yesterday at the OB office, which was incredibly uneventful. The only curve ball was that I had lost a pound, so now I've officially only gained 12 lbs. I don't know what is wrong with me!! They measured my belly though and it was measuring exactly at 32 weeks, so obviously baby is just trucking along and packing on the pounds. We go back in two more weeks so we'll see if I gain anything by then!

Jordon and I are getting more and more nervous for Tyler to make his big debut... it is literally 8 or less weeks away!! We're still incredibly unprepared, but we're having baby showers the next two weekends, so hopefully we will get what we need then, or at least have an idea of what we need to go out and buy ourselves. I can't believe how quickly this time has gone by, but at the same time it seems like I've been pregnant forever! Judging by the amount that my dear son kicks, I think he is trying to make an escape route, and I have a feeling he may come early... but I guess we'll just have to wait and see!

31 Weeks

So incredibly happy that I have some good news to report from this week! Since last Wednesday, Jordon and I had been so worried about our little baby boy, but had been trying to put our faith and trust in God that everything would be okay. Well on this past Wednesday, we went into our OB's office for our 3d ultrasound which we had scheduled way in the past. We weren't sure if we even really wanted to have it done considering the circumstances, but the window for getting a good picture of the baby's face before he got too crowded in the womb was closing in, so we figured we just do it and try to enjoy it!

The sonographer was SO nice and worked with us a bunch to get a good picture of Tyler. Unfortunately, he is already stubborn and had a hand in front of this face, along with his umbilical cord, so it was difficult to get a good face shot. I tried drinking soda, drinking cold water, moving around, using the bathroom, and nothing seemed to work. In fact, at one point he had both hands, and a foot in front of his face haha. We managed to get some OK shots, but nothing too great. But what made the experience worth the $ we paid for it was a little reassurance we got. We weren't sure whether to let the know sonographer about the ventriculomegaly (it was a different tech from the one who found it the week before), but we ended up letting her know. She went ahead and scanned his head and from her measurements, his ventricles were only 9.4mm, while measurements of greater than 10mm are needed to diagnose ventriculomegaly. She said she would be surprised if they told us anything was wrong when we went to UVA on Friday. I was pretty relieved, but still nervous that there could be an underlying syndrome which caused whatever the other tech had seen the previous week.

On Friday, we woke up at 5am (although I'll be honest, I don't think I really even slept that night) and took off for UVA. I had been praying long and hard that the appointment would go well and we'd have peace about the situation, and until Thursday night I really had been feeling okay about the situation, but Friday morning I was a wreck. I literally felt nauseous because I was so nervous, but Jordon was amazing helping me through it all.

When we got to our appointment, the sonographer started by looking at Tyler's ventricles. She measured them between 9 and 10 mm and told us she'd seen "normal" ventricles up to 12 mm and some physicians even considered up to 12mm normal. That was definitely reassuring. Then she did all sort of other measurements, especially the size of his head, abdomen, arms and legs.

She had the doctor come in, who went ahead and did another quick ultrasound. She measured his ventricles even smaller, once even at 7mm and at most 9.4mm (the measurements are dependent on the angle of the probe and location of the head so they can definitely vary), so she told us she really wasn't too concerned. Plus she measured some of the other ventricles other than the main 2, and all those weren't even close to being enlarged. She wants us to come in a month from now to make sure they don't progress and swell up, but as far as she was concerned, Tyler probably just has a little larger ventricles. If they do progress any, she said we could think about delivering at UVA in case he needs a shunt put in to drain the fluid after he's born, but again she wasn't too concerned. I asked her about the chance that a syndrome was causing it, and she said she wasn't really concerned about it, but if we wanted we could meet with a genetic counselor we could. We actually had already made the appointment for after our ultrasound, but it was good to hear the doctor didn't even think it was necessary!

We then met with the genetic counselor which made me even more reassured Tyler was healthy. We discussed any possible causes of the swelling, specifically infection, and she said if I had one of the infections that causes this, I would have known. As far as she was concerned it was probably just error in the original measurements at our office and he just had slightly big ventricles, as some boys do. I asked about the possibility of down syndrome, because I had scared myself so much with information about it's association with ventriculomegaly on google, but again she wasn't concerned. She said Tyler was looking perfect other than the slightly bigger ventricles, and with DS you'd seen other things like more skin on the back of the neck, a small stomach, or short arms and legs. She said ventriculomegaly on its own is actually not a strong indicator of DS. She also said if it would be anything genetic, it'd probably be some genetic disorder that only boys get that causes some developmental delay, but because his ventricles are still in the normal range, our case wasn't presenting at all like the syndrome. She said if we really wanted we could do an amniocentesis, but she wouldn't even recommend it at this point. Jordon and I had decided before the appointment that we wouldn't even bother if they recommended it, because we obviously would never terminate if anything was wrong and because we wanted to trust God up to the birth that Tyler was exactly as he was supposed to be, but it was still good to hear even a genetic counselor didn't think it was necessary.

Tyler's head is definitely still big (measuring at the 95th percentile) which makes me a little nervous that I may need a c-section, but I've realized now I'd much rather have a healthy c-section baby than have a baby with any health problems naturally. This whole experience has made me so incredibly grateful for my little man, despite my ever increasing back pain, fatigue, heat intolerance, and peeing haha. I thank God so much for listening and answering our prayers, and I thank everyone who prayed SO MUCH for helping us. It is amazing to know you have people behind you on things like this, and it really helped me to have peace that God was hearing our pleas and looking over Tyler. Jordon and I know that everything will be okay with Tyler, but will continue to be praying for his health, and hope you will too!

Mark 11:22-24
"'Have faith in God,' Jesus answered. 'I tell you the truth, if anyone says to this mountain, "Go, throw yourself into the sea," and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him. Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours."

30 Weeks

Yesterday Jordon and I had our 30 week appointment, and it was by far one of the hardest things we've encountered on this journey. I had to have an ultrasound done because I haven't gained much weight during the pregnancy and they wanted to check that Tyler was still growing alright despite that. Well, he was definitely a big boy. He was measuring far ahead of his due date (they dated him as being due the 12th instead of the 28th of July) and was estimated to weigh 3 lb 14oz.

Unfortunately, his head size was measuring >95th percentile for his gestational age. One issue with that is the possibility that he'll have a big head and I'll need a c-section (which this pro-natural birth mom-to-be would like to avoid), however there were other indications. The ventricles of his brain were measuring large as well, something called ventriculomegaly. Apparently they need to be less than 10 mm and Tyler's were measuring somewhere between 10-15mm (I'm not really sure the number but it classified his case as "moderate"). So this bought us a trip to UVA for a level 2 ultrasound.

The midwife explained what this all meant a little bit, but either she wasn't very familiar with it (it is rare, occurring in only 1 of 1000 babies) or she really just didn't know enough from the ultrasound we had at the office to say anything about our case because she didn't give us much to go on. Long story short we know that there is some swelling, but we don't know a definite on the degree until we get to the next ultrasound. They have no clue what is causing it until we get to UVA, but it COULD be an infection that I fought off but the baby couldn't fight, a virus, a genetic/chromosomal disease, or something that has no known origin. We won't know until we get to UVA where it is going, but it could either resolve on it's own, resolve to a lower classification (so mild ventriculomegaly), or it could progress. Progression (from what I've read on the internet... I know, bad idea) could mean the baby could get hydrocephalus (increased pressure in the brain from increasing fluid), or could have neurological problems. Even if it doesn't progress, there is the chance that he will have developmental delays because of the increase in pressure going on right now, we just don't know if that is something our baby is at risk for.

So it is just awful having all of these uncertainties hanging over our head. Part of me is just sure everything has to be okay because this is my perfect little boy and he's been just fine until now (And with that cute little foot up there, how could something be wrong with him)! The other part of me fears the worse and I'm not sure if I need to start preparing myself for the possibility that Tyler will have something wrong with him when he's born, or for his entire life. The worst part is that we finally had our appointment scheduled, and they couldn't get us in until next Friday (the 27th)! That is 8 long days of worrying. I am trying SO hard to just pray about it and have faith that everything will be just fine. The Bible says, "Faith is being sure of what we hope for..." so I am going to try my hardest to be sure that Tyler is okay!! And whatever comes of the situation, I will be stronger for it and be able to handle it.

Jordon has been the best husband ever through all of this... poor guy has to deal with my crying all the time and still manages to stay positive throughout it all. Even though most my prayers are aimed for Tyler, I still make sure to thank God for really hitting the jackpot when he gave me Jordon as a husband :-)

So if you all could keep our little man in your prayers, we would truly appreciate it. Please pray number 1, that he is okay, and whatever going on in his head resolves without any major complications. Also pray that whatever God's will be with this situation, Jordon and I will be able to handle it and will be stronger for it. Thanks for reading and we will keep you updated!

29 Weeks

This week has been thankfully much more uneventful than the last. Baby has been growing and growing, and as he grows his kicks and punches are getting stronger and stronger. Jordon and I are still amazed whenever we can see his foot clearly move under my skin... talk about crazy!

As I read what is happening inside my belly each week, I am amazed at the process of the growth of a human being. This week, Tyler is getting closer to being 3 lbs, and about the length of a loaf of bread! I can't believe I have that inside me! His brain has developed to the point where he can control his own breathing and body temperature. They say babies "practice" breathing in the womb by breathing in amniotic fluid (um... ew) and can get hiccups from swallowing all that fluid. I know my man must be getting plenty of practice because he gets hiccups all the time! I had always heard stories of babies getting hiccups in the womb, and always wondered what it would feel like, and the other day I felt little movements which I thought were tiny kicks, until they started happening every 2 seconds for a few minutes. I KNEW they had to be hiccups! And he gets them every few days now haha.

And hiccups aren't the only movement I've been feeling. He is still moving around like crazy. I feel kicks, punches, squirms, rolls, tosses and turns all the time in there. Sometimes I swear he is trying to do the worm because I'll feel a rolling/squirming that make my entire belly visibly move. I've read your should start doing "kick counts" twice a day, and count the # of times your little one moves in an hour... if you count less than 10 movements in an hours, there may be some sort of issue in there. Well, I've started to do them, but they only last about 10 minutes or less because he moves SO much and SO often. Jordon and I are a little frightened of how crazy this boy will be when he comes out and learns to walk haha.

Next Wednesday we have an appointment at the OB and an ultrasound to make sure Tyler is growing despite my lack of packing on the pounds. Jordon and I are excited that we get to SEE our little one again! And the next week we're doing a 3D/4D ultrasound, so we'll get to say hello again! We are lucky, lucky parents!

28 Weeks

Wow. What a week it has been. My first official week in the third trimester really showed no mercy.

Like I mentioned last week, I had an awful toothache, which I ended up seeing my dentist for on Friday. Turns out I probably needed a root canal, but made an appointment with an endodontist for Monday to confirm. Monday rolled around and I got a call from the dentist's office that they'd checked with my insurance, and at best they would pay $300 of my $1000 root canal if I had to get one. Plus, they didn't cover the crown that I would need to have put on the tooth afterward, which would run another $1050. Like I really have the money for that?? I went in for the consultation and found out I definitely needed to have a root canal. Or I could have the tooth pulled, but I'd probably need a bridge put in later, or an implant, which would probably end up being even more expensive. They also told me I could wait until the baby was born to get it done if I felt more comfortable that way, but I would be risking it getting worse or infected. I called my mother who graciously offered to pay for my endodontic adventures and decided to go ahead and schedule the procedure for May 19th.

Well, that night I started to have some contractions. They weren't painful, but my belly was super tight and my uterus was definitely contracting. I tried laying on my left side and drinking water like they say to do, but nothing would help. I was having them every 5-7 minutes consistantly so I finally called the midwife on-call at the hospital and she told me to come in. Well one round trip to Harrisonburg and 2 and a half hours later, we found out they were just Braxton Hicks contractions brought on by stress. Hmm I wonder where all that stress came from?? The good thing though was the baby's heart rate was just perfect the whole time and the nurse said she was surprised that such a young baby was responding so well to contractions. Go Tyler!

Anyways, Wednesday rolled around and I went into the dentist for a cleaning. Well, I had swelling around my root canal-doomed tooth, and the dentist said it was the beginning of an infection. They called my endodontist and moved my procedure up to the next day! Plus I had to go on antibiotics. Could the week get worse? Long story short, I had the root canal done yesterday and it actually went really well... I am terrified of the dentist but the guy was great and so nice!! Still cost an arm and a leg (and a couple extra fingers and toes at that), but at least I didn't feel any pain! Plus, although I can't take Ibuprofen for the pain/swelling as normally recommended (since I'm preggers), I'm not in much pain at all today.

We also had an OB appointment yesterday morning. I had to drink the 10 fl oz. of extra sugary orange Hi-C (well, that's what it tasted like) for my glucose tolerance test. Yuck . Then I got my blood drawn when I got into the office(the results came back and I'm gestational-diabetes-free!). I then went in and met with the midwife who was concerned because I had actually lost 1/2 lb since my last visit, so I've only gained 11 lbs overall. She scheduled us for an ultrasound to make sure baby is growing despite my lack of growth on the scale. However, according to the belly measurement, he's growing right on track, so I'm not too concerned. It was pretty funny because when the midwife was measuring my belly, Tyler was kicking and moving like a mad man! She got a little kick and was so surprised! Then he kept on kicking her hands! She loved it haha. I KNEW my baby moved more than the average boy ;-) They also decided to take more blood because I've been feeling extra tired recently, and they wanted to check to make sure my thyroid is still behaving.

So there is my long rant about this week. It definitely was not fun, but it is over and things are getting taken care of. We go back in 2 weeks for another appointment and the growth ultrasound, and then the next week we're doing a 3D/4D ultrasound! We are very excited to see our little boy 2 weeks in a row! We also have an appointment to pre-register at the hospital in 2 weeks, so it is just making everything that much more real!! I cannot wait until this little boy comes to meet us!!

27 Weeks

After 27 weeks of pregnancy, I’m entering my 28^th week, which means I’m officially entering my THIRD trimester! Boy, does time fly! I cannot believe I have been pregnant this long and how quickly the time has flown. It really makes me think back on everything I’ve experienced thus far in this journey:

Some of the worst parts about being pregnant:

1. morning sickness

2. fatigue

3. not being able to run at the intensity/duration I used to be able to

4. being grumpy at my poor husband all the time

5. not being able to fit into 95% of my clothes

6. the literal pain of my belly growing

Some of the best parts about being pregnant:

1. having a baby in my belly!

2. The first time I felt my boy move

3. Having an excuse to be lazy

4. Random strangers who smile at my belly

Some of the WEIRDEST things that have happened while pregnant:

1. I ate meat (just a little, and yes I regret it)

2. I get one or two sporadic hiccups whenever I’m hungry

3. I sleep at least 9 hours a night

4. I rarely crave sweets and will randomly crave beer (even though I almost never drank pre-pregnancy and definitely have not indulged!)

5. My nails are so long it looks like I have fake tips on them

So these past 27 weeks have really taught me how awful, exciting, and weird pregnancy can really be. Yes, I realize I have more “worst parts” than “best parts” and will admit, pregnancy isn’t quite as fun as I thought it would be, but I am realizing more and more everyday that the end product will be such a blessing that I will most likely forget all the bad parts of pregnancy (that is, until baby #2 makes their appearance!). I am going to be SO much more prepared the next time around!

Tyler has sure been busy this week. He is just moving all the time! Sometimes I wonder if it is abnormal to have a little one who moves SO much. He is about the size of an eggplant (just not quite so purple), over one foot “tall” from head to toe, and weighs about 2lbs. Maybe more, as I’ve been eating like it’s going out of style. Still right on track with my weight gain though… just about 12lbs so far (although personally I think my thighs say otherwise haha). And his little brain is developing rapidly and apparently his brain waves are firing like those of a newborn (or faster because my child is definitely a genius!).

I’ve been doing pretty well this week… I’m not as sore from everything growing as I have been for the past couple months, and I’ve been sleeping fairly well thanks to my Boppy. I even brought it to Roanoke with me when we went to visit family for Easter. I do, however, have an awful toothache and am terrified I may have an infection/need a root canal. Last time this tooth was sore, it was just from grinding my teeth in my sleep, so I’m hoping that’s the case this time. I’m scheduled to go to the dentist next Wednesday though, so if it hasn’t cleared up by then, we’ll see what my options are (can they do root canals on pregnant women??). PLEASE keep my poor tooth in your prayers!!!

I appreciate you all following me this far on my journey to mommyhood! Hang in there, we only have 13 weeks to go!

26 Weeks

My goodness does time fly. This week went by like it was nothing. It probably had something to do with the fact that I was so extremely busy! I subbed twice at the Christian school, had a tennis match all the way over at East Rockingham and finalized and submitted my Masters thesis!

Despite how busy I was, it was hard to forget just how pregnant I am. First of all, I have a beach ball in my belly, seriously. My belly is just huge. And in the last couple weeks, I feel like I've really been noticeably pregnant to everyone else as well. I'm not sure if its because I'm really that much bigger, or because it's warmer and I'm no longer wearing sweatshirts everyday, but I'm getting all of those "Oh, when are you due??!" questions from strangers all the time. I am enjoying the special, pregnant-lady treatment though. The other day I was in the Walmart and forgot to grab a cart, so I was heading toward the carts and this man who was almost inside the store was like "Oh here, take mine!!" I mean, it's not like I couldn't have walked that last 10 ft to get shopping cart, but it was pretty nice that he gave his cart up haha. And when we went to Chick-fil-a the other night after our tennis match, I went up to order an ice cream cone, and the lady behind the counter asked me how far along I was and what I was having etc, and then she comes out around the corner with my "small" ice cream cone which was the size of the Eiffel tower. I guess she thought that pregnant women need their ice cream!!

On the downside, I'm definitely feeling the side effects of that big belly. My back aches all the time! I realized how pregnant I was on Tuesday when I was watching the girls play tennis for hours, and during doubles the other team's coach came up and asked me when I was due, etc. I realized then that I had been standing with my hands on my lower back, belly pushed forward a bit, rocking back and forth. I'm one of those pregnant women!

Other than making mommy look like she has a beach ball in her belly, Tyler has been busy growing and developing. He weighs about 2 lbs now, and his lungs are just maturing away. Sometime this week his eyes will start to open (they have been fused shut for quite sometime now) so apparently he may respond to light changes in the womb. I've read if you shine a flashlight on your belly they baby may start to move because he sees it (Although he moves pretty constantly these days, so I doubt he needs much encouragement!). His hearing is also much more sensitive these days and his brain waves are working like crazy. I think he'll be a smart little boy!!

25 Weeks

I'm 25 weeks and still growing. Sometimes I can't imagine getting any bigger than I am, and the next day I wake up even larger. However, my pregnancy pillow is seriously from heaven, so at least I'm sleeping pretty well!

I had an OB appointment on Thursday which went well. My darling husband had to meet me at the office because he was working during the day, so I had to start off the appointment all by my lonesome. It was good though, because I got to hear the baby's heart rate (a strong 143 bpm), and then Jordon showed up about 30 seconds later, so the midwife let us hear the heart again so Jordon could hear. It was so funny because she put the doppler back on my belly, and the baby's heart rate had jumped so much! She said it was probably because Daddy had come in the room! I believe it ;-)

My next appointment will be in THREE weeks instead of four, which is pretty exciting, and then after that appointment I'll go every two weeks. And at my next appointment I get to do my glucose tolerance test (woo hoo!) and drink sugary orange drink and get my blood drawn one hour later. Fun, fun. I'll have to give an update about that experience!

Jordon and I kept our little baby nephew last night (as well as the little t monster) and it gave us a nice little taste of parenthood. Lucas was super fussy when he got here, but once he fell asleep around 11pm, he was OUT. We put him in the pack and play in our room to sleep, and he was fine, but anytime he made any little noise Jordon and I would jump out of bed! We both slept so lightly because he were so worried about the little guy! Then Jordon tried to feed him at 2am, but he was so passed out he only ate a little bit, so we went ahead and put him back in the pack and play. I woke up at 4:30, not because he was fussy, but because I just kept worrying about him. I ended up taking him to eat, which of course he only drank a tiny bit, and then passed out again (apparently he doesn't ever sleep through the night for his parents, but he was behaving for Aunt Mandi and Uncle Jordy!). Then I ended up falling asleep with him on the couch for the next 4 hours. It was amazing. Jord and I missed both of the kids so much when Luke picked them up this morning!!! If one night attached me to baby Lucas that much, I know it will take the jaws of life to separate me from Tyler for any amount of time once he comes.

Spaking of my little boy, Tyler had been active as ever this week. He really does LOVE tennis. I'm not sure if he knows tennis is going on, or he's just reacting to me stressing out from watching tennis, but I like to think he loves tennis already! His spine is almost fully formed this week (150 joints, 33 rings, and 1,000 ligaments), so he is getting ready to be a little tennis star! His nostrils are also opening up (hey have been closed until this point) so he can start practicing breathing through his nose now too. Busy week!

24 Weeks

Getting closer and closer! Little Tyler is about 1 foot long and weights anywhere between 1 and 1/3 lbs to 1 and 1/2 lbs. If I had to guess, I'd say the latter, because I've been eating like a professional competitive eater recently. A couple days ago I had a burrito (in my defense, it was fairly small) and then I decided I needed a second lunch, so I had a veggie burger haha. Two lunches? No big deal :-) I have been able exercise a lot though, so between being pregnant and active, I don't feel so bad about my growing-teenage-boy-sized appetite.

I've started to have a higher tolerance for exercise than I did a month ago... A few weeks ago I did a "long" run with my tennis girls and had on/off contractions for 15 minutes afterward, but then I did the same run with them a few days ago and I felt nothing! I also played an hour and half of tennis on Sunday without any belly pains or contractions (however my thighs were definitely killing me the next day from running after all those balls!). I've been using my Wii Fit a bunch, which is the perfect pregnancy workout... not too intense, a nice mix of cardio, yoga, and strength training, and I get to pick my exercises so I don't have to do anything I know I shouldn't be. I wish I had a video of me doing it though, because my belly is just huge and it is the funniest thing to see. Have you ever watched a pregnant lady do the hula hoop workout on wii fit? I could probably make some money on a video like that!

Like I said, my belly is just growing and growing! All my workout shirts seem to be failing in the covering-my-tummy department. Thankfully, I just got a whole new maternity wardrobe thanks to SR becoming a mommy and no longer needing her big in the belly clothes. Today I took out all the clothes from my closet that will inevitably be too small for me to be wearing while this pregnant, and made room for all of the maternity stuff I have acquired. Brand new wardrobe? Check.

Yesterday I had to worst back pain of my life. I believe it's from my sleeping positions (because I wake up 10 times a night uncomfortable), so darling husband and I decided it was time to invest in a pregnancy pillow. Jordon stopped by the Target on his way home from Bridgewater yesterday, and dropped $50 on a Boppy total body pillow. Ridiculous amount to spend in a pillow, but after sleeping so well last night, I firmly believe it is one of the best investments we've ever made. This bad boy starts at the top with a curve so the head and back of the neck is supported, continues down the front of the body, cradling the belly, then continues to curve between the legs all the way to the back, completely supporting the hips. Yes, it's huge, but I love it. Yay for pregnancy pillows!

As for my dear little baby boy, he is twisting and moving all about all the time. This week and during the weeks to come is the time for him to start gaining all that subcutaneous fat, so his body will plump out and he'll start to look less like a little skeleton and a little more like a chubby baby. His lungs are maturing, meaning that if for some reason he was born prematurely, he'd have a chance of survival that only will go up in the following weeks. Reading all of this information about his development really makes it sink in that I have a CHILD in there and he is going to be in my arms SO SOON! It is wild to think about. I continue to pray everyday that he is growing healthy and strong, and I hope you all will continue to pray for us as well!

23 Weeks

... And another week down. This week was pretty rough because on top of being pregnant, I had an awful cold! Sore throat started on Saturday night and didn't resolve until Monday night, and starting Monday through today my poor nose has been so stuffed! It makes it so difficult to get a good night's sleep! But I had two rounds of soup, thanks to my MIL and SIL, and I've been trying my best to rest, so I'm beginning to feel a little better. Can't wait to be healthy again!

Pregnancy-wise, I've also had a rough week. Yesterday I woke up and my belly just ached. The abdominal muscles that run horizontally from the spine to the abdomen (my anatomy lab professor would be so mad that I don't remember what any of those muscles are called!) were SO sore. It honestly felt like someone was blowing a beach ball up inside my belly and my muscles and skin were just trying to stretch to accommodate it. I didn't realize pregnancy was going to hurt! haha Today has been MUCH better, so I am very thankful for that. However, I know that I am sure not done growing yet!

Tyler had been moving like wild recently, even as I speak! I used to know how he was positioned in my belly, because at out last ultrasound he was head down and I only felt kicks to one side of my belly, however now I feel them all over all the time... if I had not seen him in our ultrasound 2 weeks ago, I'd be convinced he had 8 legs haha.

So other than my belly expanding rapidly, and Tyler moving rapidly, we have no crazy news for you. Please continue to keep Tyler in your prayers, that he continues to grow and plump up as he should! And please keep me and my ever expanding body in your prayers... I know I'll need them as the next few weeks pass by!

22 Weeks!

I've made it to 22 weeks! I feel like each week that passes is such an accomplishment, and I love the milestones because it means I'm one step closer to having that little baby in my arms and not my stomach!

This week has been a fairly uneventful one. I am still feeling my little papaya move all the time! It's funny because I feel like he moves so particularly... for example, when Duke was beating UNC about a week back, he was moving like crazy, and when I'm getting excited while watching tennis, he moves like crazy. It may just be me, but I'm convinced that this little man is already taking after Daddy and loves sports.

I'm still pretty achy too, and I hear that isn't going to get better anytime soon. I asked the midwife about it, because my entire abdominal wall would just ache at times and she said because I've never had a baby and because I'm so fit, my body is going to have to work hard to pull my abs apart as my baby grows. Well, thank you midwife! At least I still get to hear I'm "so fit" while I'm gaining pound after pound (maybe midwives are just trained to say that kind of stuff? haha). I also ache SO much when I sleep! I'm getting much better at sleeping on my side (not like I really have the choice of sleeping on my belly these days), but I think the weight of my belly stresses out my muscles. Whenever I wake up to go to the bathroom (which is often!) I am surprised by how much I hurt. I'm seriously thinking about investing in one of those Snoogle or Boppy pregnancy pillow... they are $50 but I hear they are worth it. Let's see if I can talk hubby into it!

Recently, Jordon and I have been challenging each other to get more into the word everyday. It's really important now as we really need to trust God with our situation and with the growth and development of our son. Well I decided to read a random Psalm the other day and stumbled upon psalm 139:13-16:

¹³ For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
¹⁴ I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well.
¹⁵ My frame was not hidden from you
when I was made in the secret place,
when I was woven together in the depths of the earth.
¹⁶ Your eyes saw my unformed body;
all the days ordained for me were written in your book
before one of them came to be.

God created my little one :-) And He knows everything about Tyler's life already, so I suppose there is no use worrying in it right now. It's good to know someone much bigger and greater is in control.

I started reading Psalms out loud too, because I read that the baby can hear, particularly the sound of my voice, now. Last night he was definitely squirming about when I was reading, so I guess he likes it! I'm just so excited for this little guy to get here :-) Thanks to everyone for all of the encouragement... please continue to keep us in your thoughts and prayers!

21 Weeks

Officially 21 weeks preggers, which means I'm on the downslope of this pregnancy! The biggest change in baby this week is how much he MOVES! I means it is crazy! I haven't felt a ton of big kicks like I did last week, but I feel him squirm and flip around SO much. And they are strong enough that Jordon can feel them from the outside too (however last night Tyler would move around, and then stop right when Jordon put his hand on my belly... Tyler apparently likes to tease Daddy already). Last night I made the mistake of drinking Coke with my late dinner and it sure made that baby move! ALL night long. Anytime I'd wake up to use the bathroom or something , it felt like I was waking up to him doing flips.

We went to the OB for our big ultrasound today! It was awesome. Tyler is still officially a boy (thank goodness because I don't know how I'd adjust if I found out that my little boy was actually a little girl!), and that he had exactly 10 fingers and 10 toes. He also has 2 kidneys, all four heart chambers, the necessary heart valves and vessels, both hemispheres of his brain, a cerebellum, etc etc. He is perfect! It was very good to hear. And my uterus and cervix looked good and ready to keep on growing for baby. It was all very encouraging to hear, and both Jordon and I made sure to send God some extra thank-you prayers for his hand in helping my little man grow and develop. The picture above is a shot of the little one rubbing his eyes. He wasn't too active during the ultrasound (most likely because he moved ALL night long and was catching up on sleep) but he did rub his eyes, and he "waved" and he did this little pensive pose where he rested his chin on his fist like he was thinking. It was pretty hilarious. We also found out that he is head down and his feet are up and to the left of my belly... exactly where I felt those big kicks last week!

We almost got my due date changed to earlier today as well. Apparently last ultrasound (At 14 weeks) I was measuring 6 days ahead and today I was measuring 6 days ahead as well, so they considered moving my due date up to July 22nd (my little brother's birthday actually!). But they decided not to because an earlier due date would mean if I was late, they'd consider inducing me earlier on and that is definitely something I don't want to have done. This way we have a little more leeway room for baby to be later before they start scheming to get him out of there. I don't really mind either way, although I'm hoping he comes on the earlier date because I'm sure I'll be ready to get him out as soon as July rolls around.

I also was able to talk to the midwife about the trouble I've been having exercising. I have been getting pretty bad cramps when I run or do activity (like playing tennis) for more than 10-15 minutes continuously, and I was worried something was wrong. Apparently, I was actually having contractions (isn't it way too early to hear that word??) but she said not to worry about them unless they don't stop after I cease exercise and that I just need to bring my activity level down when I start getting them. So the good news is, I can still exercise, but I do really have to listen to my body!

Jordon and I are so excited that everything is progressing so well. It is crazy that I am already 21 weeks pregnant, when I feel like it was just a couple of week ago that I still had my nice flat stomach! Sooner than we know it, Tyler will be here!! Very exciting, but very scary, so please keep us in your thoughts and prayers!

20 Weeks

Finally reached the half-way point! Yes! This past week just flew by because Jordon and I were off vacationing with the Bridgewater Tennis teams in Hilton Head, SC. What a wonderful way to spend my break!

Living in the Shenandoah Valley, I have an obvious love and appreciate for the mountains and how God provided us with this beautiful backdrop for my life. However, spending time in Hilton Head has made me realize what am amazing creation He has in the beach as well. And not in the way that most people think.

The weather was nice, but definitely not swimming or laying-out worthy (temperatures ranges from low 60s-70). But everyday, Jordon and I would take walks out on the beach and it was amazing. We saw SO many different things, and I felt like a kid again, squealing over starfish, sand dollars, crabs, shells, etc. It was just amazing to see all of these things I never get to see at home.

Plus, the week really made me realize what life is going to be like after I have a little boy. Jordon and I stayed in the Men's team house, so I got my fair share of what living with a boy is really like (Jordon doesn't really count since he is a little more grown up and actually pretty neat for a guy!). Obviously living with 7 guys is a bit of an extreme, but boy did it scare me. First of all, they eat SO much. Four giant things of gatorade, 6 boxes of cereal (some of them costco size), 3 gallons of milk, and a few boxes of granola bars were gone in 4 days or less (and that was just breakfasts and snacks). You should have seen them down hamburgers an hot dogs... as scary as it was, it was almost impressive. And they are not very clean :-/ I'm hoping Jordon and I can teach Tyler early on how to be neat!!

As with the last couple of weeks, I'm really starting to actually FEEL pregnant. Not that the morning sickness and fatigue didn't do it, but having a belly really makes you feel pregnant rather than just unbearably sick. My belly is growing like crazy. It's funny because each week I feel like I'm getting SO much bigger than the last week, but then I'm surprised all over again the following week when I'm even bigger. I cannot imagine what I'll feel like when I hit the 3rd trimester.

I'm still pretty uncomfortable with my belly growing. It hurts every time I stand up or sit down because of all the stretching going on. However, I had been having pretty bad cramps from my uterus growing and those are starting to slow down in frequency, so I can't complain too much! And yesterday I felt the baby legitimately kick for the first time!! I've been feeling flutters a bunch over the past couple weeks, but I got 4 big old soccer player kicks in the left side of my belly last night!! I felt the first one and was so shocked, so Jordon put his hand on my belly and about 15 seconds later Tyler kicked again and Jordon was able to feel it. Needless to say, we were pumped! This morning I felt a couple kicks too, but I think I can only feel it when I lay in a particular position because of the way my placenta is in the front of my uterus (so I think it may cushion any kicks to the front of my belly). Anyway, it was amazing, and weird, and miraculous all at the same time. I've said it before and I will say it again, pregnancy is wild.

Please continue to keep us in your thoughts and prayers. We head to the baby doctor on Thursday for our big ultrasound, so I hope to report back with good news and lots of new pictures of Tyler!

19 Weeks

Today marks my baby's 19th week growth b-day! As excited as I am to almost be to that half-way mark of my pregnancy, my mind has been focused on another little baby today... baby Lucas Aaron Robinson Jr., my precious nephew born this morning at 8:10am, at a whooping 8 lbs 15.4oz. Big boy! I am so happy for my bro and sis-in-law for their precious babe! And if my little boy is born exactly on his due date, Lucas and Tyler will only be 21 weeks apart (can you spell trouble??). Anyways, props to the other Mrs. Robinson for carry that heavy boy for 40 weeks (while working 12 hours shifts as a nurse), to Luke for buying and fixing up a house in time to welcome his little one home, and to the Tay monster for her new little brother. SO excited for you all :-)

As for my pregnancy journey... it has become quite the adventure this week. I feel like my belly is just growing and growing like a weed. It's so hard to believe I'm getting as big as I am because I wear mostly workout clothes and sweatshirts all day, so when it's time to hop into the shower or get changed or something, I catch a glimpse of myself in the mirror and am like "When in the world did I get so BIG?" (although I guess I haven't really seen anything yet!) It just surprises me everytime! The other day I went into school with Jordon to help him teach PE, and we did a relay with the 1st and 2nd graders in which they had to dribble a basketball while running. Well when I dribbled the basketball, and it kept catching just the tip of my belly when it bounced up! haha. Never had that happen before!

Despite my growing belly size, I have been super active this week which I am LOVING. Being couch-ridden is probably the worst form of torture for a exercise physiology major/avid exerciser. Finally having the energy to get outside and move has been awesome. I've been running almost everyday with my tennis girls, walked up to and back from the park on Sunday in that beautiful weather, played some tennis with Jordon, and have been taking the pups for walks as well. I even did a plyometric workout with the tennis girls last Friday, which exhausted both them and me!

As excited as I am to be moving again, it is VERY frustrating. I have been exercising like a mad woman since I've been in college, so I am very used to pushing myself harder and harder each time I workout... I even consider walking in the middle of a run a sin. However, I obviously cannot be doing that while pregnant, and there lies my problem. I've had 2 experiences of EXTREME fatigue after working out "too hard" in the last couple weeks. I work out and feel great about it, but then half an hour later my whole body feels just exhausted and I cannot do a thing. Its difficult for me to gauge what is "too hard" for my pregnant body when I'm used to having such a higher tolerance pre-pregnancy. So I'm slowly learning to adjust my activity levels... it's still frustrating though. I know my baby will thank me for the physical activity later in life, but obviously not if it is too much, so I really need to learn that balance.

My belly is also just starting to be uncomfortable. I have that massive scar running from 3 inches above my belly button to the top of my pubic bone, so it is in the middle of belly-central and is stretching like crazy (and it hurts!). The midwife said it won't interfere with the pregnancy or growth or anything like that, but it will be a (literal) pain. I also notice all of my abdominal and oblique muscle get really sore easily. I did 3 loads of laundry a couple days ago, and going up and down the basement steps and bending over and such left me SO sore that night. Who knew doing laundry could be so physically demanding? And to top it off, I'm having a lot of round-ligament pain (pain from the stretching of the ligaments attached to the uterus), so anytime I sit down or stand up, I get twinges of pain. Sigh.

Yes, I'm officially one of those whining, complaining pregnant women... and it only took 19 weeks!

But on the bright side, I do have a WONDERFUL blessing growing inside me, so it is definitely all worth it. I cannot wait to meet my son! 40 weeks seems like way too long to have to wait for a baby, but as Jordon keeps reminding me, these past 19 weeks have flown by, so we can expect nothing less from these next 21. Also, after recommendations from 3 moms/mommas-to-be, I finally invested in a Beband.... a wonderful piece of elastic that slips over the top of your jeans and keeps them up while you leave them unbutton and unzipped. Yes! It is by-far the best invention in the world. I don't think I'm ever going to take this baby off.

Anyways, thanks for continuing to read about my pregnancy-escapades... I appreciate all the encouragement from family and friends! And I know Tyler does too!

18 Weeks

Today marks the 18 week mark... 2 weeks to halfway through! My little sweet potato is apparently moving like crazy this week, but I only feel little flutters every now and then when I'm sitting completely still. It kind of feels like a goldfish is swimming around my uterus. Wonderful image, huh?

The hard part about pregnancy this week is getting some decent sleep! It's hard to find a comfortable position because I'm typically a belly-sleeper, and sleeping on my side is just not the same. Plus, I wake up sore from sleeping in new positions. On top of everything, I've been having just the wildest dreams. So it's hard to fall asleep, I wake up in weird positions, I wake up to pee, and I wake up from these dreams, and all together I'm not getting much restful sleep! Thank goodness for naps!

Tennis practice started on Monday, so I've been busy with that. I actually really enjoy being busy during the day with school, my internship and tennis, because it keeps me busy enough to not realize how tired I am! Plus, I've been trying to do a lot of the conditioning with the girls, so I've been able to stay active as well.

Jordon and I are very excited for our next OB visit... St. Patty's Day! We're eager to see how much Tyler has grown since we last saw him (I think a lot since my belly is just getting bigger and bigger!). Even though my belly is still obviously small in comparison to how it will be later in the pregnancy, I still feel like it's huge... I'm not used to having a belly this big! And my jeans are just too tight to handle the lower part of my belly... even the rubber band through the button hole trick is getting tough. Thankfully, I found a pair of jeans that I haven't worn in forever because they were too big. My SIL also passed on a bunch of maternity clothes to me the other day, so I should be set once my little boy starts popping out a bit more.

Please continue to keep us and Tyler in your thoughts and prayers!

17 weeks

17 weeks pregnant yesterday! Jordon and I continue to get more and more excited everyday! We just want to hold our baby and never let go :-) We went to the OB yesterday and it seems that everything is growing just the way it should. Next time we go, we get to do the "big" ultrasound... the one where they normally tell you the gender and such (although we are already blessed to know we have a wild child aka a boy on the way). I'm excited for it anyway, because it will be much longer, so I can check out my beautiful child for a longer period of time, and we can check on how well he's growing (although judging by my ever-expanding bump, he is definitely growing right on track). I only weighed in at a whooping 118 lbs this time, but the midwife said I should be packing on the lbs anytime now, so I'm not concerned (I'll be honest, I don't think I'm ready to see anything over 120lbs on the scale yet... at least not until my bump gets bigger and I can be assured it's baby weight and not thigh weight haha!).

So I found out something pretty cool about my little onion the other day (he's about the size of an onion now apparently). When babies are growing inside the uterus, they start out with fingers with smooth skin on them. Then, as they move around, the fluid sweeping by the thin, mold-able skin of the fingers creates the ridges that are fingerprints! How crazy!? With as much as my little onion moves, he is going to have wild fingerprints haha.

I have been feeling pretty darn great recently (physically that is... I'll get to the emotional wreck I am in a few). I've been revving back up my exercise routine thanks to my favorite undergrad-thesis-assistant-turned-exercise-buddy Niki. Last week we went to the gym at her apartment complex and I rocked out a nice 2 mile farklet treadmill workout. The only hard thing about running when you're pregnant is how bad you have to pee when everything is bouncing around in there! We also did some weight training too... I've been busting out squats a few times a week in order to strengthen up my thigh muscles so I can give birth while standing/squatting (don't judge... gravity helps you making labor easier. I'll do whatever to make it go easier!!). I love having energy again and I love not being nauseous 24/7 anymore. I did take a nice hour long nap the other day, but other than that I've been pretty energetic recently. It's a good thing too, because I start coaching tennis on Monday! If I hadn't been active up until now, that would definitely be changing on Monday.

Emotionally I've been the typical pregnant woman. Last night I saw a commercial for a new lifetime show called Coming Home about people in the army coming home and surprising their kids. It took all that I had to not break out in sobs. I did seriously tear up though. I mean really, it was just a commercial!! I don't think I'm allowed to watch the show haha. And the other day Jordon and I's checking account got overdrawn because my paycheck from JMU didn't get put in on time. I then I proceeded to have a crying fit about how poor we were and how I couldn't even afford a pair of maternity pants. Oh, it was a sight to be seen. My poor husband. However, if I remember correctly, I think all was cured by a brownie sundae.

Until next time... keep us and Tyler in your prayers!

16 Weeks

My little avocado (yes, he's about that big now) is 16 weeks old now! And it seems like he is growing and growing every day. It is very strange to have my stomach growing into a big bump (especially when it's not from brownies haha).

I've been much, much less tired and much, much less nauseous. As long as I get enough sleep at night and eat what my body tells me too, I feel great. Which is good because school, my internship and subbing at the school has kept me very busy! Yesterday, I helped Jordon teach PE in the afternoon, and one of the preschoolers said "It looks like you have a baby in your tummy" and I said "Well, that's because I do!" and she said "Did God put it there?" It was SO cute. It makes me that much more excited to have a little one!

I also got a sweet surprise from Miss Erin Mahoney in the mail this week! Two sets of adorable onesies and a stuffed giraffe (see photo above)... so much fun! I love my friends and how they spoil me and my unborn child haha.

Jordon and I are going to the doctor this upcoming Thursday, so we are excited to make sure everything is going right on track with Tyler!

15 Weeks

Thursday officially marked the 15 week mark, however I couldn't blog on time because Shentel is an awful internet provider and we didn't have internet Wednesday through today. You would think if they were going to have a monopoly on phone and internet, they'd at least provide decent service. Bah. Enough ranting about Shentel.

I feel like my stomach is getting exponentially bigger, however I have only gained 1.6 lbs from my starting weight. Although taking into account the 3 lbs I lost during the first trimester, I guess I've technically gained 4.6 lbs. Either way, the doctor said the baby is growing just fine and not to obsess so much over the number of pounds gained but just eating well, so that is what I'm doing.

Jordon and I are getting more and more excited for little Tyler to make his experience... I even had a dream last night that I thought I went into labor so we went to the hospital and they said I wasn't really in labor so I decided to climb the stairs in the hospital until I did go into labor haha. I was very determined.

As I've told everyone I've discussed pregnancy with, I am in awe of the crazy things happening to my body that I never expected to. In particular, I've noticed that anytime I get hungry I have just a couple hiccups. Just like one or two. And they are associated with the feeling of hunger. Weird. Plus, the whole not craving sweets things is still freaking me out.

Jordon woke up today with some flu-like symptoms, so I'm doing everything I can to avoid getting sick while still taking care of my helpless hubby. Poor thing. I just downed at least 10 oz. of orange juice and plan on keeping that up. I've also washed my hands so much today that they are completely void of any moisture and could definitely pass as sandpaper. As long as I don't get sick, I don't mind!

Please keep Jordon in your prayers, and please keep me in my prayers so that I do not get sick!!!