baby bump #3: week 22

Week 22 Stats:

You know its your 3rd baby when you have to get onto the computer to know what week your on.  I think with Amos, I always knew which DAY I was on.  That could be part of the reason why this pregnancy is going SO fast.

How big is baby: a spaghetti squash.  Seems big.

Maternity clothes:  Oh yeah, and now complete strangers know I'm pregnant.

Sleep:  Can't sleep on my stomach any more and can't sleep on my back.  Starting to have some hip issues

Best moment this week:  Celebrating Amos' birthday.  It reminded me how fast life goes by. 

Movement:  Some major kicks, but for the most part, still pretty small movements.

Food craving:  No real cravings.

Food aversions:  Every so often I'll get nauseous and everything will sound bad, but other than that, I don't have any aversions right now.

Gender: Still don't know the gender, but I don't know if I'm going to be able to wait until baby is born to find out.

Labor signs: n/a

Belly button:  Definitely still in.

What I miss:  Being able to breath deep.

What I'm not loving:  The come and go nausea 

What I'm looking forward to:  Vacation next week!  No picking up toys for at least 4 days!

What I'm loving:  Amos talking about the baby almost every morning at breakfast.

Milestones:  No major baby milestones, but we did get our appraisal on our house done this week.  Waiting to hear back and know for sure if we're moving!

our 4th of july

We headed down to the lake for some early 4th of July celebrating on the 3rd.  But after having so much fun, we decided to spend the night and hang out the next day.  Amos was excited about the big sleepover until it was actually time to go to bed.  Then he wanted to be at home in his bed.  With some coaxing, he made it to sleep, dreaming about jumping off the boat more the next day.

We only got to see some family in passing, but it was still nice to spend the days relaxing and eating too much good food.  The boys loved every bit of it.  Here they are being goofy in the cabin.

And we spent a lot of time on the boat and in the water.

 Silas will be ready to be a daredevil next year.  This year, he took it pretty easy.

silas john - 20 months

1.  We've read books together for a long time, but now he goes into his room by himself to look at books.  I'll go looking for him and just find him sitting on the floor surrounded by books!

2.  We'll leave this one open-ended, but it's funny how early certain traits present themselves.

3.  Just recently I threw a pillow in the bed with Silas.  He loved it and says "Pillow" every night.

4.  Not only his belly button, but anyone's he can see.

5.  Amos can hear his name spoken through a closed door, Silas can hear if someone is getting something to eat.  He's quick to be at your side asking for his share.

6.  Silas' favorite form of attack is the head butt.

7.  He's just starting to run.  Too bad it looks more like a speed-walker than a runner.

8.  This kinda goes without saying.

9.  I continue to be amazed by how quickly his vocabulary is developing.  Everyday he's using a new word that I didn't know he knew.

10.  I usually try to exercise while the boys are watching Sesame Street, but without fail, Silas will wander in and start helping or mimicking.  You should see this boy do a squat.

a baby and a beard

We had our ultrasound this week!  It's not quite as exciting when you aren't finding out the gender, but it was still fun to see Baby bouncing around in there and find out that everything looks perfect.  The ultrasound also confirmed that baby is measuring for a Nov. 14th due date.  That means I'm actually 20 weeks along.  Half-way.

Can you tell if we are having a boy or girl?  Baby didn't give us much to work with. Once the tech switched over to 3D/4D all she could get was the baby lying face down!

Something else is growing at our house beside my belly?  You may not recognize this man come November because he's planning on not shaving it off until then.  Wonder which will be bigger?  The baby or his beard?  Here's Jason on his 30th birthday with the boys!

Week 20 stats

How big is baby: as heavy as a can of pop and as long as a banana

Maternity clothes:  Not much variety.  So if you see me wearing the same thing all the time, try not to mention it.

Sleep: It seems like something different hurts every morning, but luckily it wears away pretty quickly.

Best moment this week: The ultrasound.  Jason came with me and then we went out to celebrate his birthday early while my mom and sister watched the boys.

Movement:  I found out that my placenta is on the front side of my uterus, which explains why I didn't feel this baby moving around near as early as I did Silas.  But movement really seems to be picking up now.

Food cravings: I just really haven't had much of an appetite recently.  

Food aversions:  Breakfast, ha!

Gender: If anything, the ultrasound made me more uncertain about the gender.  I had been thinking girl, but now I have no idea.

Labor signs: Nope

Belly button in or out: in

What I miss:  sitting on the floor without hip pain

What I'm not loving:  Bending down to pick up things.  

What I'm looking forward to:  We're taking a mini-vacation to South Dakota mid-July!  We've booked the B&B and everything!  

What I'm loving:  Amos coming up with ridiculous names for the Baby.  Wanka Wanka, anyone?

Milestones:  Half-way mark!

summer fun at the lake

We knew we wanted to get to the lake as much as possible this summer.  We both love it and the boys do too!  After two failed attempts, we finally made it down this past weekend.  It was extra fun because all my siblings were there too!  It felt like old times, with the addition of 5 kids under three.

Due to my pregnant state, I wasn't allowed to do any skiing, but I enjoyed sunbathing in the boat.  My favorite part was holding Silas.  Every time the boat started, he quickly laid his head on my chest until we turned it off and then he would sit up and yell, "All done."  He's still getting use to the boat, but I loved all the snuggle time.

All the kiddos, minus Clara, tried out the tube.  Amos loved it and rode a second time.

He also liked watching Daddy ride the wakeboard, but when asked if he was going to ride it, he nervously laughed out a "No" and told us he was too little.

Amos has several favorites from the lake.  His others are driving the boat with Gramps

and jumping into the water!

baby bump #3 - week 18

Week 18 stats

How big is baby: sweet potato

Maternity clothes:  Yes!  I'm contemplating tweaking some tops that I never wear to make them more belly friendly.  We'll see if I get around to it.

Sleep: I'm still able to semi-stomach sleep, but that will be over very soon.  I'm trying to soak up a decent night's sleep while I still can.

Best moment this week: Amos telling Silas to "be careful with Mommy because there is a baby inside of her tummy."  He's really catching on.  Although that means he asks me about once a day if it's time for me to go to the hospital.

Movement: Definite movement.  I'm still only feeling from the inside out, but soon Jason will be able to feel the little baby too!

Food cravings: No cravings.  I'm trying to eat semi-healthy.  But that doesn't always work out.

Food aversions:  Here and there certain things won't sound good, but no specific aversions.

Gender: Not yet. 

Labor signs: Luckily nothing

Belly button in or out: in

What I miss:  summer clothes

What I'm not loving:  The constant urge to use the bathroom

What I'm looking forward to:  Ultrasound in 5 days!  Can't wait to see our adorable little alien baby.  And to show Amos the pictures.

What I'm loving:  Jason being home and having some lazy summer days.

Milestones:  Lots more movement this week.  It's nice to have a semi-constant reminder that baby is in there and doing well.

recent happenings

Summer is in full swing at the Vance house.  So far its been filled with three things: house hunting, water, and family.

HOUSE HUNTING

Jokingly, I told Jason to sell the house while we were on vacation.  (We've had it on the market since February)  Well, he just about did.  The day we traveled home from Cali, we had a house showing that Jason prepped for completely on his own.  And that weekend we found ourselves UNDER CONTRACT.  Our relator told us we might want to start looking at houses, and that's what we've been doing since.  I've had trouble remaining at peace during these last 3 weeks, as it seems like everything could fall through any minute.  And it could - that's the nature of this crazy process.  I'm constantly sucked into worry, and constantly having to renew my mind and trust in the Lord - the one who holds tomorrow.

On the flip side of things, the boys have loved going in and out of house after house.  Amos' favorite thing to do is find the highest thing to jump from.  And most days Amos asks if we are going to see Ms Cindy!

WATER

These boys love water.  We've tried to go to the lake twice already, but due to weather and an Ecoli outbreak we have yet to go.  Instead we've gone fishing, went to Grammy's pool to swim and broke out the sprinkler and our little pool.  The heat doesn't seem to bother the boys too much, neither does profusely sweating, so they're out quite a bit.  And good news for me, Dad can be out with them if Mom needs a cool break inside.  

FAMILY

We've spent the last two weekends with family.  First was when both of our parents came to town to check out a potential house.  To Amos' delight, Jason's parents and Grandma stayed the night, so we had extra playtime.  

The next day we headed to my parents house for fishing, eating and swimming.  The weather cooled off a bit, making it an enjoyable, laid back day.  

We headed off the next Thursday for an extended stay in Lebanon.  We can do that in the summer.  The weather was perfect for spending everyday outside, talking, riding bikes and even hiking.  Amos got an early birthday present from Granny and he woke up from every nap asking if he could go ride his new blue bike.