Weekend Recap

Hello, and Happy Monday!! I hope you all are having a great start to the week. We had an interesting day to kick things off. While I was cleaning up after lunch today, Brooke tripped and fell in her room and by the time I made it to her, there was blood covering her face and chest. At first I thought she bit all the way through her lip, but thankfully she just fell hard enough to cut both the inside and outside. She was such a trooper through the initial scare and her trip to the doctor, so we had ice cream for dinner. Our weekend was eventful, and thankfully involved way fewer tears.

Saturday we had some morning pool time, early naps, and then we were off to a friend's wedding. The wedding was at a local farm and was complete with goats, sheep, and pigs. A few of the kids' close friends were there, so they got to play with their friends while we hung out with ours. The bride and groom were both gorgeous, and had a lovely event. After the wedding we headed home for chiminea night with our besties. Our church, which is conveniently located in our back yard, had their annual festival complete with a closing fireworks display. We ate s'mores, listened to live music, watched fireworks, laughed the night away, and stayed up way too late.

Not enough sleep and too much chiminea smoke left me feeling rough in the morning, so a big breakfast and coffee was necessary. While the H and B played in their pool, we cleaned up from the party and worked on our tans. I'm seriously sorry to any of our neighbors that were blinded by my big pale belly on display. I promised the kids a trip to the splash pad after naps, so that's how we finished off our evening.

August is my favorite month of the year, and I was excited to kick it off this weekend. I'm looking forward to the last few weeks of pool trips, outdoor concerts, and summer nights. Once September gets here I'll be ready for all things fall, but for now, viva la summer!

17 Weeks

How Far Along - 17 Weeks
Babies' Size - 5.1 inches, 5.9 ounces, about the size of an onion
Total Weight Gain - Another 2 this week, bringing the grand total to 13 gained. I haven't changed my eating habits over the last few weeks, but it seems we've moved from 1 a week to 2 a week. At this rate I may make it to 20 pounds by 20 weeks.
Maternity Clothes - Lots of maternity tanks and yoga pants around the house. Still doing a few pre-preg clothes when I venture outside the house. Trying to make my shorts last as long as possible with the Bella Band. With temps hovering around 90 most days, my maternity jeans are just too hot.
Sleep - Another good week of sleep, although I wish I could get myself to sleep before 11pm. Naps still happen frequently. I can bypass a nap if I drink iced coffee in the morning, but otherwise I'm ready to lay down for a siesta by 1pm.
Cravings - No real cravings this week. I have been thinking about a Chop Chop salad from Catablu for the last couple days, but it hasn't been so bad that I've dashed out to get one. I've been eating bacon, egg, and cheese bagels a lot on the morning, and they've really been hitting the spot. Yay protein!!
Symptoms - My plantar fasciitis has started acting up a lot this week. I think the extra weight is making a big difference. I've been doing my stretches every day, but I'm still feeling lots of pain in my heels. I ordered a sleep boot to try since the usual PT isn't working. Because sleeping isn't hard enough during pregnancy, lets throw in a bulky boot to make things more interesting.
Miss Anything - Nothing this week. We had friends over last night for a chiminea and a few drinks, and I surprisingly didn't wish I had a drink in my hand.
Looking Forward to - We're counting the days until the big ultrasound! 11 more to be exact. I've been trying not to think about names too much since we don't know sexes yet. The babes mostly go by Baby A and Baby B, although we occasionally refer to them as Miles and Maizy. I'm ready to affix a gender and hopefully an agreed upon name to these babes.
Best Moment this Week - There have been quite a few of them. Anything where Harrison and Brooke have been loving on the babies ranks as a best moment of the week. There have been lots of belly kisses, and Brooke got the feel Baby B move, even though she really couldn't feel anything. We were both very excited for her to be feeling on my belly when Baby B was moving around.

365 Challenge - Week 29

As I'm sure you can tell by these pictures, we've been spending a lot of time outside. Like every day. Between the new pool, the splash pad, The Y, and a few park trips, we've been keeping our days full of sun and fun. The temps have been in the high 80s for the last week, but today was the first day the heat really got to me. I didn't expect that being in my second tri during the summer would make a difference, but carrying around an extra 10+ pounds of weight on my belly has made a noticeable difference in my heat tolerance. I see more splash pad and pool, and less park in our future.

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7.29.2015

Weekend

We had one of those weekends where it seems like every minute is packed full of something, even if that something is nap time. My girlfriends and I have been discussing lately how much there is to do every weekend right now. I'm sure it's this way in all northern cities, but there are so many outdoor activities all packed into a span of 4 months. It makes it hard to do everything we want to do, and some weekends we wind up with multiple activities on our plate. This weekend was one of those weekends.

Friday morning started with us leaving the house earlier than usual. We were out the door by 9, stopped for Donuts and coffee on the way to drop off the dogs at daycare, and were the first ones to the park, arriving before 10am. H and B convinced me they needed their swimsuits, so they played and splashed, and I had to drag them home with sad faces when 12:30 rolled around. Our afternoon and evening involved some work, dinner on the patio, and outdoor playtime in the back yard.

Saturday morning we hit up Target, and somehow left with an inflatable kiddie pool complete with slide and waterfall. As soon as we were done with errands the pool went up, and the kids jumped right in. As soon as naps were over, they were back in. I had to drag them out so we could get dressed to go out with our friends that evening. On the agenda was Foodstock, Fort Wayne's big food truck event, and outdoor movie night. Harry and I got to enjoy Bravas and Brooke decided she wanted to try Pizza Diva. The little lady ate a whole 9" pizza by herself. 

The featured movie of the evening was Pee Wee's Big Adventure. We ate ice cream and Texas sheet cake, played with sidewalk chalk and glow sticks, made it through the whole movie, and then went home and passed out. The kids really enjoyed the movie, which was a big change from when we watch Back to the Future last month. Thank you Pee Wee for keeping them laughing all night.

Sunday morning we were all up early, so off to breakfast we went. Rob is usually up late and sleeps in, so it was a nice treat for us all to be up early. Although it would have been nicer if the kids would have actually slept in since they didn't go to be until midnight. After jelly tic tac toe, pancakes, and omelets, we headed to the park for a few. Then it was off to our cousin's house to join them for swimming and some grilling out. Long naps followed, and the rest of the evening was spent playing in the backyard. Pool time and bubbles make these kiddos happy. But really, who doesn't that make happy?

I hope all of your are enjoying these summer weekends as much as we are. August is my favorite month of the year, and not just because it's my birth month. I am very much looking forward to the weekends to come.

16 Weeks

How Far Along - 16 Weeks 1 Day
Babies' Size - 4.6 inches, 3.5 ounces, approximately the sizes of an avocado
Total Weight Gain - Plus 2 this week, 11 total
Maternity Clothes - Yes please! Still stretching out a few pre-pregnancy shirts, but pre pregnancy pants are quickly becoming a thing of the past.
Sleep - Pretty darn good this week. I finally have added The Snoogle to my nightly slumbers, and I think I really like it. I wind up in all kinds of awkward positions when I sleep lately, and The Snoogle helps to support me no matter what which is great. It's ginormous and has forced the dogs out of bed most nights, but that's just too bad for them.
Cravings - If you follow along on Instagram (@jennpargeon), you probably saw my craving for pickles and cream cheese wrapped in lunch meat. That is my first real crazy craving. It was so good though! Mostly I'm still craving lots of fluids and fruit. Strawberries, blackberries, grapes, and apples are leading the favorites list.
Symptoms - I've noticed a little bit of hip pain the last couple days, and I'm not sure if it's from the extra weight, or if I just slept wrong. I feel like it's pretty early to be getting some in my joints, but we shall see. Lots of muscle stretching going on. I can feel that in my belly daily. Overall I'm feeling pretty darn good right now.
Miss Anything - The limited wardrobe is already kind of a bummer. I miss being able to pick whatever I wanted to wear and being able to wear it. I know, woe is me.
Looking Forward to - Feeling more movement. I am getting regular movement out of both babies now, but I'm really looking forward to some strong kicks, especially ones Robbie and the Kids will be able to feel. My favorite part of pregnancy with H and B was watching them move my stomach every which way. I can't wait to experience that again.
Best Moment this Week - After 16 weeks of no real exercise, I did a Zumba class last week. I was fully expecting it to be a disaster, but I felt like I did really well. I had to modify a few moves, and take it easy in some portions, but I kept up with class really well and had a great time doing it. I'm going again on Wednesday this week, and hope to start making it to class twice a week. If I can keep it up at least for a couple months, I will be very happy. I love walking, but I really miss being able to work up a good sweat.

365 Challenge - Weeks 27 & 28

I have been majorly slacking off on picking up the camera, and at taking pictures in general. So even though I have a picture for every day, I only love about half of these. Now that I'm feeling better and our daily lives are looking a little more like we're used to, I am going to make it a goal to get back to picking up the Nikon every day. I love having so many pictures of the kids, and as much as I loved the veggie tacos I made on Monday, they really shouldn't have been the only thing I took a picture of.

We've been staying up past bedtime quite a bit lately, and we've even skipped naps a couple times. Concerts in the parks and afternoons at the pool are too much fun to pass up. The over tired kids the next day I could do without, but the fun is worth the sacrifice. I'm sure our summer next year will be lots of fun, but it will definitely be different. I want to enjoy every evening of fun with these two while it's still just the two of them. As I'm sitting here writing this, baby b is doing some serious flips in my belly, reminding me that they'll be here before we know it.

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7.22.2015

15 Weeks

How Far Along - 15 Weeks 2 Days
Total Weight Gain - I was ravenous all week. Once the kids were in bed I'd sit down on the couch and be so hungry. Like I could eat a Greek yogurt, bowl of cereal, an Ensure, and still be hungry. 2 pounds gain this week puts us up to 9 pounds total.
Maternity Clothes - Still mixing and matching pre pregnancy and maternity.
Sleep - Naps are now only happening about half of the days in the week. I'm going to bed before 11 most nights and sleeping until the kids wake me up between 7 and 7:30. Lots of switching sides throughout the night, but overall really good sleep. I just wish the morning didn't come so early.
Cravings - Fruits, lots and lots of fruits. Summer fruit is so good, I just can't get enough of it. Things like apples, plums, and peaches that are easy to grab and go have been a daily treat. Blackberries are so good right now that I can't get enough of them.
Symptoms - A few random headaches that may or may not be pregnancy related. More growing pains this week, and a general feeling on uncomfortableness toward the end of the day.
Purchases - I've been on the hunt for good maternity shorts since we've had a few high 80s and 90 degree days. I found a pair that aren't terrible, so I bought them. I'm not convinced that a flattering pair actually exist though.
Miss Anything - It's been a really good week. Not missing anything.
Looking Forward to - It's still 3 weeks away, but I'm already getting excited for our anatomy scan.
Best Moment this Week - I went in for an OB appointment this week. When the nurse practitioner went to do the doppler, I told her where I thought the babies were. I've felt little bits of movement, so I thought I knew. Sure enough, as soon as she put the want to my stomach, instant heartbeats. There's nothing better than the reassurance of hearing healthy heartbeats, and finding out the flutters you felt were really movement and not just gas. ;)

Coming in a close second is eating at Chipotle. I had an aversion to Chipotle my entire pregnancy with H and B, which is funny considering how much they love eating there. Around 8 weeks I got a burrito bowl and couldn't eat it or my chips and guac. I thought for sure it was going to be at least 30 weeks before I could stand the taste of a burrito bowl. Harrison was begging for Chipotle one day, so we went for lunch. Much to my excitement, my bowl and their guacamole was just as delicious as I remembered. I now want to eat there every day to make up for the lost weeks.