Bump Date: Week 28

Week 28

How Far Along?  28 weeks. Officially in the 3rd trimester! 

Size of the Baby? Baby G is the size of a head of cauliflower. He is approximately 16 in, 2.5 lbs. 

Maternity Clothes? Yes, ma'am! 

Stretch Marks? I plead the fifth. 

Gender? Boy! 

Name? Future US soccer star Ben Garbe! 

Sleep? Been sleeping fairly well. I get up a lot at night and try not to trip over my furry friend Ginny. 

Cravings? I don't even know anymore. Can you just want food? Like, all the food? 

What I Miss? Running. Sitting for a period of time without getting a back ache. ;) 

Movement? Yes! Lost of movement. 

Symptoms? HEARTBURN. But I'm not helping anything by wanting to eat Mexican food all of the time. 

Belly Button? In, and I suspect will be in for quite a while! 

Best Moment of the week? USA advancing in the World Cup! Grandpa Andersen visiting! 

Looking forward to: I needed today off. Maternity leave could not come at a better time for me at work ---- although I will caring for someone who 100% depends on me (and Dave!!), it will be ONE person that I can focus on rather than the 200 patients I've accumulated on my caseload (read: burned. out. big time!). This girl needs a change of pace ---- even if it's a huge, adorable, presumably perfect (what?), life-altering change of pace! I'm also looking forward to putting the dresser together today with my dad, Dave putting the crib together today with my dad, and figuring out what artwork we want in the nursery. :) 

Some pictures from our weekend! We ran up to Dickeyville, WI for some New Glarus beer (I stored some away for me post-baby!) and stopped by Park Farm Winery in Bankston, IA for some wood-fired pizza, wine (I maaaaybe had a delicious sip or two), and a gorgeous view.  

*that glass picture is Dave's. Though pre-pregnancy that was my definition of a "sip", it is not currently. Sadly. ;)

Bump Date: Week 27

Week 27

How Far Along?  27 weeks (last week of the 2nd trimester!)

Size of the Baby? Baby G is the size of a cucumber. He has new measurements now ---- so rather than being crown to rump, he is head-to-toe. Baby G is 15 inches and 2.2 lbs.

Maternity Clothes? Yes, ma'am! Except for US Soccer jerseys and flowy dresses. ;) 

Stretch Marks? None from pregnancy so far!

Gender? Boy! 

Name? Benjamin! Likely my maiden name for his middle name. 

Sleep? I either have a hard time falling asleep and staying up late or I'm falling asleep promptly at 9PM once my head hits the pillow. I also seem to be waking up a bit after midnight when Ben starts kicking a lot. 

Cravings? Sour cream with taco seasoning. Don't try it. It's addicting and guaranteed to give you heartburn. Tacos. I think Dave may need to take me out on a taco date this week! 

What I Miss? Energy. 

Movement? Yes! Lost of movement. I did an interesting 1990's prenatal yoga dvd and Ben kicked the whole time. He also seems to kick a lot during soccer games. ;) 

Symptoms? Tums are my new best friend. Also Zantac. My back is aching, too, if I sit at work for too long. I think I may bring in a big workout ball to sit on. I'm hot all the time, so I'm glad the weather hasn't been too terrible! 

Belly Button? In, and I suspect will be in for quite a while! 

Best Moment of the week? Best: US win over Ghana last Monday. Worst: US tie in the last 30 seconds to Portugal yesterday evening. Though, there was an adorable baby girl at the bar yesterday wearing the onesie shown above and a really cute red/white/blue tutu. How could that not make ya smile. :D 

Looking forward to: A visit from Grandpa Andersen this weekend! Hopefully a win/tie over Germany! Crib and dresser set-up and guest bedroom done! And also some much-needed days off from work. My last days off before baby Ben arrives this Fall. Oh --- and here's hoping I pass my glucose test on Friday ---- a summer without ice cream would be no fun at all. ;) 

Bump Date: Week 26

Week 26

How Far Along?  26 weeks (last Friday...) 

Size of the Baby? Baby G is the size of an eggplant. He is holding out at 9 inches long but is now 2 lbs!

Maternity Clothes? Yes, ma'am! 

Stretch Marks? None from pregnancy so far! Go figure. ;)   

Gender? Boy! 

Name? Benjamin! Likely my maiden name for his middle name. 

Sleep? Still sleeping well once I fall asleep ---- hoping to keep that going for a while. Having some odd dreams, but that's pretty normal for me anyway. 

Cravings? No big cravings this particular week. 

What I Miss? Family and friends. I had an emotional moment last weekend in Schaumburg thinking of how wonderful it was to grow up in that suburb and wanting to end up in a great place for Ben to grow up. 

Movement? Yes! Lost of movement. :) 

Symptoms? Tums are my new best friend. 

Belly Button? In, and I suspect will be in for quite a while! 

Best Moment of the week? Heading to Schaumburg for the weekend and going to our first baby shower for Ben! I had a much needed day of rest on Saturday followed by the wonderful shower thrown by the Garbe family on Sunday. My jaw hurt after the shower from smiling so much. Thanks for taking some wonderful pictures, MommaDonna! I'm going to have to download some of those pictures for Ben's digital baby book. 

Looking forward to: A quiet weekend at home --- I am looking forward to working on our projects this weekend (painting closet doors, continuing to paint trim white; etc.) as well cheering on the USA to win over Portugal on Sunday!

Some weekend pictures: 

Bump Date: Week 25

25 weeks

17 weeks for comparison

How Far Along?  25 weeks (forgot to take a picture this week, but I thought you'd enjoy my toes starting to disappear! Also, you can see that Ben is sitting towards the right side, haha) 

Size of the Baby? Baby G is the size of an eggplant. He is 9 inches long and 1.7 lbs. 

Maternity Clothes? Yes, ma'am! 

Stretch Marks? Sadly, not from this baby! Who'd have figured.  

Gender? Boy! 

Name? Benjamin "Benny Bear" Garbe

Sleep? Decent!

Cravings? Whole milk. I know I'm grossing some people out with that one (except my Katie Mo! Skim milk is water! haha). 

.....and Stella. 

What I Miss? Running. :) I am also adjusting to not being able to do the things I used to without really paying for it the next day. 

Movement? Yes! Lots of movement! Coolest feeling ever. If we play music on the stereo he kicks A TON. In Vegas during the Beatles LOVE Cirque show, he was kicking hard the entire time. Especially during "Hey Jude". Kid has good taste. ;) 

Symptoms? I had the worst. heartburn. of. my. life. this week. It kept me awake, I ate tums, which I hate the texture of but I just HAD to stop the heartburn and get some sleep. I used my pregnancy pillow behind my back to elevate myself. It was NOT fun. I think I figured out that all the strawberries/strawberry smoothies I was consuming was leading to the heartburn, because once I stopped eating that fruit I haven't had bad heartburn. I was also getting "morning sickness" around 3:00 - 4:00 every day until I stopped eating strawberries. Perhaps my first true aversion?? Other symptoms: Pregnancy brain (did you notice this weekend, Britt??? haha). I'm also completely rational 100% of the time, just ask Dave. ;)

Belly Button? In, and I suspect will be in for quite a while! 

Best Moment of the week? Celebrating Britt's bachelorette party!! The girls were so sweet and fun, I'm so glad to be in the bridal party with them! Some highlights: flying in over the strip, seeing some of the sights, gelato, yummy dinners (um, I may or may not have tried a million bites a bite of every girl's dinner one night...), spending the day at the pool, Cirque show, and other shenanigans that must stay in Vegas. ;) hehehe 

Looking forward to: Heading to Schaumburg this weekend for our first baby shower with the Garbe family! Ben has been SO spoiled already, the kindness of family and friends has been wonderfully overwhelming! 

Some Vegas pics: 

Bump Date: Week 24

24 weeks

How Far Along?  24 weeks (picture taken last Friday! --- and I promise, Ben's monthly pictures will be taken with the dslr!!). Officially in the 6th month. 
Size of the Baby? Baby G is the size of an ear of corn. He is 8.5 inches and 1.5 lbs. 
Maternity Clothes? Daily! 
Stretch Marks? HA. 
Gender? BOY! 
Name? Ben! Middle name likely my maiden name. Unless the USA wins the world cup, then he's getting a soccer player's name. ;) 
Sleep? Sleeping okay ---- Ben likes to kick in the middle of the night, but so far he's small enough that I don't mind and can fall asleep pretty quickly after I wake up. 
Cravings? Strawberries. Taco dip this last weekend ---- and now I never want it again, haha. 
What I Miss? Running. :) Walking is nice, but I really miss getting a good run in --- especially when the weather is reeeaally nice. 
Movement? Yes! Dave was finally able to feel Ben kick earlier this week! :D 
Symptoms? Fatigue is back! 
Belly Button? In, and I suspect will be in for quite a while! 
Best Moment of the week? Dave feeling Ben kick for the first time! Usually Ben sits pretty low and he's not able to feel any kicking --- but on this particular day, Ben was up higher and closer to my ribcage. Very exciting, and soon enough he'll be able to feel him all the time. ;) We also ordered both the crib and Ben's dresser (that we are doubling as a changing table). His crib arrived already ---- we're planning on putting some of the furniture together later this month, when Grandpa Andersen is visiting. We still need to pick out some artwork and lighting. 
Looking forward to: Vegas this weekend for Britt's bachelorette party! I'm really proud of myself --- I haven't spilled any secrets yet. :) 0:) :D It will be a blast, and I'm most looking forward to spending time with some great girls and relaxing by the pool! 

Pretty sure I texted this to everyone over the weekend, but some Baby Gap cuteness for your Wednesday: