Pregnancy Update: 31 Weeks

Brandon, my brother Jacob, and I at a re-enactment.

 

Now that we have hit the 30 week mark I feel like this baby is actually coming soon!  🙂  We are so anxious to meet her.  Right now our baby probably weighs over 3 pounds and is around 16″ long.  This baby continues to move around like crazy!  She kicks and does somersaults at all hours of the day (or night).  I am finding that as she gets bigger she is actually keeping me awake from all of the movement.  I don’t remember this being an issue with Eli.

I had an appointment last week at 30 weeks and baby looks great.  So far I have only gained a total of 7 pounds which I am very pleased with.  I sure do feel all belly though-wow!  My next appointment is next week at 32 weeks.  Since I am nearing the end of pregnancy I will be visiting the doctor every 2 weeks.  We have been trying to complete all sorts of things like check-ups before the baby comes.  This past week I went to the dentist and had a mole removed on top of my ob visit.  What a great feeling to cross more things off of my list!  I am definitely someone who plans on staying home for at least the first month or 6 weeks after having a baby.

I have also been trying to add more pregnancy exercises each week: kegels, pelvic rocks, squats, etc.  I took a Water Aerobics class this week at our local gym.  It was a great workout and the perfect amount of cardio while being pregnant!  🙂  I’m definitely feeling clumsy so this was a great change from the elliptical machine.  I have also been having lots of Braxton-Hicks contractions this pregnancy.  I had zero with Eli so this is definitely something new.  What a great reminder that this baby will be coming in the next 2 months.

Since this is my second child I am hoping to be a little more organized this time around.  I have been making packing lists of things to bring the hospital and lists of things to do before the baby comes.  By the way I would love suggestions on what to bring to the hospital (particularly from those of you who have had a natural birth).  I have been sewing some practical things like cloth diapers and covers but hope to sew some fun girly things next month.  🙂  We have slowly been working on our newborn cloth diaper stash this summer.  I think we need a couple more covers and we will be all finished.  In September I am hoping to clean out our freezer and cook up a bunch of freezer meals to eat after the baby comes.  (I’d love recipe suggestions too!)

Elijah has been asking more and more about his new baby sister.  This morning he attended a Big Brother class at our hospital which was lots of fun.  He was so cute learning how to hold the baby, change the baby, give the baby a bottle, and burp the baby.  The class also included a very interesting movie called Sibling Silly which was made before I was even born!  Ha, ha!  Before we left we all went on a short tour of the maternity wing of the hospital where I will be delivering the baby.  I am really thankful this was something we were able to do with Elijah.  I actually remember going to similar class when I was going to be a big sister.  We made a day out of it and even had lunch at Panera.

Advertisement

Frugal Things I Did Last Week

 

Frugal Things I Did This Past Week:

My sister Bekah and I both donated a foot of our hair to Wigs for Kids.  This organization is similar to Locks for Love but does not charge kids for the wigs.

I took part in a market research study and made $45 for 45 minutes of my time.  I can’t share what the product was but it was interesting!

I sewed two newborn cloth diaper covers.  For the first cover I used the New Conceptions Pattern with leg gussets.  On the second cover I used the Babyville Boutique FOE Diaper Cover pattern.  I’m not planning on making a ton of either one since I don’t know how they will fit on our little girl.  (I made a bunch of All-in-One diapers before Elijah was born but they ended up not fitting well.)

I also purchased some size small GMD prefolds from diaperswappers.com.  I can honestly say I am really looking forward to cloth diapering our new baby.

Last week I also drafted my own pattern for a nursing sleep bra.  This was quite a stretch for me!  I sewed one but it ended up a little smaller than I would have liked.  I will probably try to make another one using fabric that has more stretch or enlarging the pattern.  Since it’s a little intimate I don’t plan on sharing a picture.  😉

I passed on some clothes to a friend that no longer fit Eli.  I really appreciate hand me downs from friends so I try hard to do the same thing.

I attended a free digital photography class at our library.  I also spent some time taking pictures of Eli and trying out some new techniques.

We moved a dresser into Eli’s room that I had been using to store sewing supplies.  The dresser was actually mine as a child but it is brown so it will work for Eli.  Eli’s former dresser is now in our nursery and will be used by baby girl.  It is a short dresser and has only 3 drawers which is plenty.  (It helps discourage me from buying too many clothes.)  We will place a changing pad on top and this is where we will change our little one.

I picked green beans, zucchini, yellow squash and peppers from our garden.

I attended a free sewing class with my mom where we made an iron tote.  I was in middle school or high school the last time I did something like this!  🙂  It was lots of fun!

What frugal things did you do last week?  

10 Goals For This Week

This week I am focusing on spending time with my favorite 3-year-old!

 

Our family just got back from spending the weekend in Dallas, TX celebrating Meme’s 90th birthday!  We had an absolute blast but it is good to be home.  My main goal for this upcoming week is to spend time with Elijah.  I feel like I have hardly spent any alone time with him in the past week.  

This Week’s Goals:

Family/Marriage/Mothering Goals

1.  Be intentional each day to spend quality time with Elijah reading and playing together.

2.  Take some photos of Elijah playing.

3.  Work on planning an overnight for Brandon & I in the next couple weeks.

Personal Goals

4.  Spend four days working on my new Bible Study The Son of David.  

5.  Finish reading Clutterbusting and Breastfeeding Naturally.  Begin reading The Hero’s Lot.

Homemaking Goals

6.  Have Eli’s new dresser moved from the basement to the upstairs.

7.  Spend two mornings working in the garden weeding and harvesting vegetables.

8.   Sew at least one newborn cloth diaper cover.

Ministry Goals

9.  Attend a cookout at a friend’s house.

10.  Make a salty snack for our church back to school bash on Wednesday night.

What are your goals this week?