26 Weeks and the survey says...

**a little late in posting this seeing as how I am almost 27 already!!**


How far along?: 26 weeks

Maternity clothes?: Pants, definitely yes. Tops, occasionally. My non pregnancy clothes are getting a little too short - so it won't be long before it's a permanent thing.

Sleep: Getting up occasionally to pee. Otherwise not bad. Sometimes that means I have trouble getting back to sleep. I've just started noticing that it's getting hard to turn.

Best moment of the week: Going to my doctor's appointment. Stubborn little baby weighs in at about 1lb and 15 ounces. Doctor tried to get a picture, but his arm was over his face. He's also floating way up high, breech. The doctor showed me my pelvis - it was a dark gaping spot. He said "that's where his head should be". Well that explains the very low kicks then! To find his head he had to go way up past my belly button. It was weird. I guess that explains why my belly button already seems to be sticking so far out - instead of tiny feet being up there - it's a big ol' head! (also according to some further research my uterus is now 2 and a half inches above my belly button. Sure seems to go fast!

Movement: Definitely. And like I said, very low.

Food Cravings: Guacamole. Last week I HAD to have biscuits and gravy. So much so that I went to the store that night and bought sausage and biscuits and made my very own homemade gravy courtesy of the Pioneer Woman. It didn't disappoint!

Gender: boy!

Belly Button: Like I said, sticking way out and the top of it popped out with about 8 weeks to go last time. The top of my belly button has been popped this time for weeks. Silly stubborn boy!

What I miss: Walking normal, not being out of breath when doing stairs, sleeping on my belly.

What I am looking forward to: I go back to my doctor in three weeks. I hoping baby will be more cooperative and I can get a darn picture! I also will have my glucose test.

Weekly Wisdom: Protonix. It is the best thing since sliced bread! For weeks I was uncomfortable with horrible reflux and not being able to sleep because of it. Doctor told me to try OTC stuff, no avail. I called back and they said this reflux med helps decrease stomach acid and is completely safe. Praise God! And the relief is AMAZING.

Milestones: Glucose test coming up, almost to third trimester. Doctor measured baby boy and said that he is measuring a few days ahead. I'm sure they'll keep an eye on that as they go!

Big C Update: He wants to name baby brother Candy Cane or Cupcake. He's fitting in with the C theme at least. He prays for baby brother every night and knows that he's growing in my belly. The other day he came up to me with two toys and all on his own gave me one and said "that's for baby brother and this one is for me". I died right there. Sharing with baby brother already? Soooo sweet!!

Things I don't want to forget...

...Your Daddy and I taking you to Chick Fil A to play, and you climb all the way to the top of the enclosed tower - look out the window and smile and say "Hi Mommy Daddy!"  and you wave until we wave back. You smoosh your face up against the plexi glass and yell "I Love you Mommy Daddy!" before running off to go down the slide or play up in the maze of tunnels. The other parents in the room smile and "awww" and say "well, that was sweet".

 

...Giving you a haircut lately. You would think we were pulling your teeth one by one with no anesthetic. You cry and bawl, so bad that one time there was snot and drool everywhere. "I don't want a hair cut either" and you'll beg ever so pitifully, "I want down, please!". Most recently it went a little better, Mommy took the reins and she likes to think she was a little gentler on your head than Daddy is. We went shorter than I would have liked, but it needed to be done to even out the mess that was the previous haircut. And shorter than I like because you age at least three years when you get your hair cut, and something about shorter makes this Mommy's heart flutter. You couldn't get in the shower fast enough, you sure hate having hair on you. Afterwards we were sure to praise you for getting your hair cut like Daddy and teling you how handsome you looked. We even would have you touch your head and remark "Ooh, look how soft it is!"

 

...Standing on the bathroom counter and and patting Daddy's chin/face stubble and asking "Daddy, you have an owwie?". Once we told you what it was, you now remind Daddy when it's time to shave. So cute.

 

...Loving playing hide and go seek. Daddy will hide at night when it's dark and you will insist on getting your Mickey Mouse Flashlight and we will use it to look in every.single.room. You will scream with delight when Daddy scares you, then you will ask "Lets do it again Daddy".

 

...Crying because you took your big boy underwear off, and alternately crying because you don't have your diaper on. It's like you can't decide if you want to be a big boy or like you say all too frequently, "No, I too small".

 

...Singing your ABCs and always leaving out M and N. And saying "Now I my ABCs, next time won't you sing with me" and always leaving out the "know" part of that line.

 

...Singing Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star and always starting it with and A from the ABCs. Then completely botching the lyrics, but oh-so adorably.

 

...Always ending a sentence with ..."right, Mom?".

...The way you bring up crocodiles multiple times a day. You are fascinated by them! 

 

...Demanding to do things " Allll myself". Like zip your coat. Buckle yourself in your car seat. The list goes on and on.

...The fact that you can tell the difference between your right and left hand. Such a smart little kid, at only 2.5! 

We love watching you grow and change each day, stay sweet little man!

It.

Our January that has been full of purging of things we don't need in our house is still in full effect. We have donated a whole car load of stuff to Goodwill, added extra shelving in our his/her's closets in the master and added shelving in our storage closet as well. Everything has to be reorganized to fit in its space. We bought those space saver bags for extra linens and ended up freeing up two shelves in our tiny linen closet. We are still in the process of reorganizing and purging everything that was in the dresser in Camden's new room and in the closet. We just have SO MUCH STUFF it seems. And it's stuff we didn't know we had or forgot about, which goes to show that it's really just NOT important. But like I have mentioned they are things we don't really want to get rid of. My wedding dress. Movies. My saddle. Crafts Camden has made.

I just need ONE more closet!!

I can't wait to get stuff organized and set up. At the same time, thinking of Camden sleeping in his new room so far away where I can't hear him? Just sounds insane. The other night he started fussing hardcore and it was turning into crying. Finally, husband got up to go see what was wrong. When Husband returned he said "his sleeves were stuck up and he wanted them down and couldn't get them down". He will be so far around the corner that I'm not sure if we will hear him crying, or for that matter getting sick in the middle of the night. It's weird to think!

The other day Camden was reading books before bed. He decided to "read" a book for Husband and I. It was so cute. He would flip the book around and show us the pictures, going from side to side around the room like a teacher would, then saying "next page" and 'reading' the book based off of the picture and then he would flip the book back around and sweep the room with the pictures to make sure both Husband and I saw them. Goodness it was adorable!

As challenging as this stage is with testing boundaries, independence and stubbornness - sure is a lot of fun. I can't wait for warmer days and longer days, so we can play outside and enjoy the sunshine!

This past weekend was AMAZING. We had a two relaxing days off, we took Camden to the Aquarium for the first time thanks to free tickets from family, and we just spent lots of time together as a family. In addtion to this we were asked at church to be leaders of the Host Team (the head of about 50 volunteers) and to lead them in encouraging emails/prayers and to help organize the set up of people. We are excited and nervous to be in this role and can't wait to see what it will bring! Besides that, I was also asked to take pictures for baptisms at one of the servies at church this past weekend. What! An! Honor! It was so cool to be up front and center and witness the joy and happiness and to be able to capture this special time for these people. So amazing!

So it was a fantastic weekend.

And then Monday happened. ;)

Monday started off like any other Monday. We were running late in the morning, about 15 minutes later than usual by the time we got to our cars. Whoopsie. So, we head out to our respective jobs and plan to get started. Camden of course woke up with worse pink eye than what he had the night before, so we had to wrestle him down and put drops in his eyes which he acts like it might be some form of medieval torture.

I pack the drops to take to school and am about to pull in to daycare and I hear "it".

You know what "it" is, I know you do.

That horrible wretching sound that you can hear from a mile away if you have mom ears. I stop the car and turn and look and ask him, "Camden, are you okay?" He nods and then I hear "it" again, followed by copious amounts of vomit. And then again. And again. By this time he's completely emptied his stomach contents of morning milk onto the front of his shirt all while strapped into his carseat. He's crying and upset, I have vomit all over my hands from putting a blanket up by his face in hopes of keeping some of it from splashing all over the car. He's done vomiting and he starts crying "I want bath". Awesome. Here I am 30 seconds from work and I'm thinking, "I do not want to waste this day of getting up and getting ready and all this hair gel". I call Husband in a panic asking him "you or me, who is staying home?" because obviously I can't take him to school like that. Husband says he'll analyze his work and call back while I attempt to clean up the car and tell people at work I'll be late. Then it dawns on me. MLK day! My mom! Luckily I have THE BEST MOM IN THE WORLD. And she happened to be off that day because it was a 'holiday'. Super Cici to the rescue! She was able to meet me at home to watch Camden. By the time she arrived I had stripped him down, clothes in the wash and I had cleaned out my car and tossed him in for his bath that he was demanding.

He stayed home and played, hardly ate and took a long nap. My mom took him to the pediatrician just to be safe, and of course he checked out just fine. He played okay the rest of the evening and got a good nights rest, so here's to hoping the rest of the weekday mornings start off less uneventful!

Year and a HALF!

Oh my goodness Camden, my love, HOW is it possible that you are already closer to TWO than ONE?

You are CONSTANTLY on the go. Running, moving, climbing. We can hardly catch a breath around here! It was right after you turned seventeen months that you found out how to climb on the couch. Which means you are able to climb on top of Pearl's platform, pull your self up into chairs of all kinds, including the dining room table chairs. And if you can climb onto those chairs, you can definitely climb ON TOP of the table. I tell people that I'm at the point now where I HAVE to take you to the bathroom with me, whether I wanted to or not. I left you alone the other day and in the 90 seconds it took me to pee you were standing on top of the kitchen table, laughing and trying to reach for the lights above it. Are you trying to give your Mommy a heart attack?

You are talking more and more. You are doing especially well with any word that starts with a 'B'. Ball, bubbles, bye bye. You are also a fan of NO, and you say this with a different tone and inflection than you say any other word, and often a shake of your pointer finger. They are teaching you at school to use "No" instead of doing something else (i.e. - hitting or stealing a toy away without asking). Unfortunately, this leads you to telling Mom and Dad 'No'. We are trying to counteract your stubbornness by making you say "please" instead of "no" to us. It's still a work in progress! You can also say more, go, mom, dad, dog, good girl, nana, wa-wa, pearl, Mickey (Mick-me). I'm sure there's more! You still sign words as well, we make you sign please, thank you, water, more and blow kisses. You do exceptionally well pointing out body parts, or finding Mick-me on your diaper.

You have been growing teeth lately like no other. I don't know what it is but since we rang in the new year you have grown three, and about to get a fourth. That is a TON of teeth in six weeks, seeing as how you were really good at spreading them out. Also, you tend to grow yours one at a time.

We started giving you a pillow at about fifteen months. You love it because you are such a tummy sleeper and are always tucking your knees up under you. I think it helps keep you level and isn't so hard on your little neck while you sleep.

You continue to remain a picky eater. We are still offering all sorts of fruits and veggies and hoping that you'll change your mind. Seeing as how you only have seven teeth up front you still prefer soft or pureed foods. You are still a major fan of beans, avocado, cheetos. Your favorites lately have been dried fruits. Dried strawberries are your FAVORITE!

We started you in swim lessons this past month and to say you are a fan would be an understatement. I can't wait to see how you do this summer, you are going to be a little fish! You are always fighting us to let you go in the water, you want to be independent so bad. Soon enough little one!

You are still sleeping well, going to bed around 715 and sleeping until we wake you at 530. You take one nap anywhere from 2-3 hours. On a weekend you usually go to bed around 8 and wake up by 7. As soon as you hear the dog, you're up!

You are still wearing a size five diaper, an overnight diaper in a size five and a size five shoe. The size five shoes are still a tad big on you. Clothes are around 18-24 months and pants up to 2T can fit you (if they are rolled up - shorty!) We will blame your big belly. :) You weigh about 24 pounds. Speaking of shoes, your new favorite thing is taking them off and trying to put them back on. You spend ALOT of time during the day attempting to do this.

You continue to LOVE daycare. You have really developed a special bond with one of your teachers at school. She lets you go with her on special errands and you always tend to gravitate towards her. It's pretty cute. Occasionally you'll even ask her to make a mohawk of your hair! They told me you keep them on their toes. I went to pick you up one day last week and they said you gave them quite a scare. I had to ask them to explain what they meant. They said that one of the girls was changing a diaper and the other one was sweeping the floor after snack and they looked up and you had scaled a bookshelf and were standing on top, getting into the upper half of the split cabinets. I told them they should see you at home! :)

They sing lots of songs at school. You came home one weekend and all you would do was grab your elbow and do a tomahawk chop and grin at us while chopping. We finally figured you wanted to hear the Skinamarink-y Dink-y Dink song. You'll also tap your head multiple times when you want to sing Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes. You are so silly! You can point at body parts when we ask, and can make noises of animals when we ask you to. Lately, every time you hear a dog bark you mimic it. You also LOVE to dance. Your favorite songs to dance to are the Hot Dog Dance from Mickey's Clubhouse and Pants by VeggieTales. You are SO cute because you have your Daddy's rhythm. Either you sway side to side or you alternate your hands in the air. That's about the extent of it!

You continue to love anything artistic. Coloring with markers and crayons you really enjoy, and you are always bringing home new masterpieces from school. This week you are learning about pets at school, so your artwork has revolved around sensory things like making a "cat" by gluing pipe cleaners on paper for whiskers. Cute! We had to print of special pictures of your buddy Pearl to show to the class. I can't wait for you to share!

{cleaning up a mess. What a little helper!}

You are pretty proficient at the iPad as well. You love to scroll pages, open and close apps and play in a few of your favorites that include: Phone 4 Kids, PeekABoo Barn and I Hear Ewe. You can't get enough of the helicopter sound in I Hear Ewe, I think thats because at school you can see the helicopters on the helipad from the playground!

{you and daddy with the helicopter you all made!}

You love to see how things work, and helping your Daddy make/fix/do things is your favorite. You are so observant and we love showing you new things each day.

Keep growing and learning little one, we love you so!

Seventeen months!

-You are growing by leaps and bounds! You look so grown up sometimes. Your 18 month clothes are starting to get a little tight. You still have a large belly, so your pants are tight, but T-shirts are still pretty big. You are mostly wearing 12-18 month tops, and 18-24 and even 2T bottoms! We switched you to a size five shoe, two days ago. They are HUGE on you, they look like clown shoes. But your toes were pushing pretty good on the edge of your fours, so there was no other option!

-You are adding more and more to your vocabulary daily. You can say all sorts of things from Mama and Dada to dog, go, more and bubbles. You still have no real interest in talking, but you understand more and more daily. You take your shoes and put them up when we tell you, you know how to feed the dog and you throw things away for us when we ask. You are continuing to sign for things you want, learning 'water' this month.

-You started the new year off with a bang, growing your fifth tooth on January 3rd! Daycare called and said you were in a horrible mood and that is extremely odd for you. They got my permission for teething tablets and said you calmed right down. Later that day I noticed you did have a rough spot up there (its your top left tooth beside your two front teeth) and it was fully through by the end of the week.

-You are sleeping fairly well despite teeth. You still cry out occasionally at night(bad dreams?), never with a real rhyme or reason, or for long enough for me to get in there. You are sleeping 715-5:30ish in the morning and taking a two hour nap.

-You continue to be the pickiest eater on the planet. I'm not joking here. Textures aren't your thing apparently, although you do love to play in your food. Your favorite things to eat are the smooth baby food purees. You continue to run to the closet and sign more for them. I'm to the point where I don't fight it, I'm just glad that you are getting somewhat healthy food in you. They changed up the menu at lunch and you are not a fan. I thought you'd like having eggs for breakfast but apparently you prefer the toast like your Mom. (go carbs!)

-Your separation anxiety waxes and wanes. Some days you chase me crying out the door, other days you'll run up to the other staff members for hugs, or you will run off to your little play gym and wave bye and blow me kisses. Melts my heart! Lately, there have been no more tears. I'm so proud when I can kiss you bye and you blow me kisses as I walk out the door. Precious!

-you are still wearing a size five diaper and an overnight diaper.

{You've been a big fan of standing on things lately}


-We had our first bout of sickness for the winter this month. You have a bit of a cough and your nose is running non-stop. Some of that I think we can thank teething for that! I had to put off your pedi appointment, maybe this coming week!

{here you are asking for Daddy to please blow bubbles}

-You loved Christmas, the new toys and playing with family. You were the slowest at unwrapping presents and then you would want to immediately play with what you had unwrapped - becoming uninterested in all the remaining wrapped presents. You got lots of toys that we are still getting used to playing.

-You love drinking your water out of your own Camelbak that we got you, it's pretty darn cute.

-On Christmas your Grandma Sid bought you a teddy bear that's a panda. You and the panda and your blankie are besties. You don't like to go anywhere in the house without either, especially after waking up or before bed. You will go to your room and attempt to jerk them through the slats of your crib if they are still 'sleeping'. You will cuddle so sweet with them, laying your head on them to snuggle.

-You are still a big fan of Mickey, but can rarely sit still or watch more than a few minutes.

{This is how you look when the Hot Dog Dance comes on. Mesmerized!}

-This month you also managed to get the most impressive bruise you have ever had. You fell while at your Grandma and Grandpa's and had an impressive bruise for a good two weeks. In fact, this the first one you've had that managed to lump off of your forehead.

{It took me a while to see this at first, but look at the shape of your forehead. Yes that protrusion is his bruise!}

You continue to grow and amaze us daily. You are the light of our lives, we are thrilled to be on this journey with you!

Mommy