What I'm Wearing 4--Sunday outfit

I thought it would be fun to share some of my church outfits once in a while.  This is what I wore last Sunday, at 19 weeks, 1 day.  I was having trouble figuring out what to wear under the white top.  None of my regular white tees would work (I don't have any plain, unembellished ones), so I eventually went with a greenish/blue tee that coordinated okay with the skirt.  I'm still not totally sure if I love the look, but it was comfortable. :)  

 This may be the only time I can wear this skirt during pregnancy, though!  I had forgotten that I made the waistband on this one more fitted.  Which meant I had to wear it high on my belly, otherwise it was too tight.  I'm not sure how much longer I'll even be able to get it on. :)

 Little bump hasn't changed much since the last time I posted . . . 

Outfit details: 

White top: Secondhand

Tee: Kohl's (not maternity)

Skirt: made by me

Necklace: handmade gift from a friend

Bracelet: gift from Compassion (I think) that we got free with a donation

Flip-flops: made by me

Not too much else to report just yet!  I have been noticing little bits of heartburn now and then, but nothing too bad yet.  It'll be interesting to see how that goes this time around.  I've been drinking my "good girl moonshine" (water with a little apple cider vinegar, sweetener, and occasionally some fruit) daily and that seems to help.  ACV is supposed to be good at keeping heartburn under control (who would have thought?!), and I have also ordered some papaya enzymes which are supposed to be really good for that as well.  They should come today, I think. I wanted to make sure to have them before our Ohio trip coming up in July!  I have had heartburn while on vacation in the past, and would like to avoid it this time if possible!

I have also discovered Natural Calm magnesium and have been taking that daily.  It's a powdered, flavored supplement that you mix into water.  I often mix it in with my ACV/water, although it is good just in plain water too!  This magnesium is supposed to be good for stress, but also helps with keeping blood pressure regulated, and digestion as well.  So far I really think it is helping in a lot of ways, and I'm glad I found out about it!

I'll try to post an official "halfway" pic in a couple of days!! Looking forward to being on the downhill side, and hoping the next 20 weeks go by as fast as the first 20. :)

What I'm Wearing 3, & 18 Week Update

Time for another update!  Today I had my 18 week appt. with Sherry.  All is well, and we were able to hear baby's heartbeat right away this time.  His/her heart rate was in the 140s-160s.  Sherry said I'm measuring right on target (18 cm fundal height).  My b/p was 130/70, and my weight is up 3 more lbs, for a total gain of 12 lbs. so far.  I had hoped to not gain more than 12 lbs. by 20 weeks; we'll see if I can keep it right around there for the next 2 weeks. :)  

Here was my outfit for today.  I feel like I look really big in the first picture, and skinny in all the side pics!  Weird.  I think I am slouching against the post in the first pic, which probably is making my belly look bigger.  Maybe?  Or it could just be the way the shirt is draping.  Anyway--love this outfit!  Although I could have gone with capris today, as it got rather hot in the afternoon.

 I am just loving how green everything is around here.  Sigh . . . I love summer. :)  Well, at least the "everything is pretty" part--not so much the heat!  But so far we have been having lovely weather, not much humidity yet, so I can't complain!

 The bump doesn't look much different than my last post--I'm not growing super fast (yet :)).  

Outfit details:

Halftee from halftee.com (LOVE this and would buy a few more if they weren't so expensive!)

Green/white top: Secondhand (Old Navy)--I love the length and drape!

Jeans: Goodwill (Old Navy) and adapted to maternity by yours truly (using an old bella band)

We discussed a few other things at my appt. today, including Rhogam and prenatal screening.  Sherry had given me a DVD on prenatal screening to watch (available free on Youtube here, if anyone's interested) and I thought it was really interesting.  We have not done screening with any of our previous pregnancies, and won't be with this one either, but I appreciated the overall tone of the film (not saying I necessarily agree with all the viewpoints expressed, of course) and how they gave questions at the end to help people determine if screening would be a good choice for them.  (To be clear, this film was only about screening for Down syndrome, Spina Bifida, and Trisomy 18.)  For me, doing the screening wouldn't really be helpful because I wouldn't choose to have further testing done (such as an amniocentesis), since I am not comfortable with the risks of those tests.  And we wouldn't choose to abort our baby, regardless of the test results.  It was just interesting to see the different viewpoints of the parents interviewed on the film.  Many really wanted to know ahead of time if their child would be born with a disability--so they could prepare mentally--and I can understand that and even relate somewhat.  But I found myself identifying most with the mom who didn't know ahead of time that her first child had Down syndrome, and later chose not to have screening done for her other two pregnancies, because as she said, it wouldn't have made any difference in her decisions.  At any rate, we are trusting God with the health of our baby and if there are any issues, we will handle them one step at a time with His help.

Regarding the Rhogam shot (I have an Rh- blood type), I am still thinking that one over.  I have the option to get it at 28 weeks, but I probably won't.  I didn't for either Julia or Josiah, and the risks of issues from not getting it then are pretty small.  If the new baby has a positive blood type (as did Sam and Josiah), then I will get it within 72 hours after giving birth.  Anyway, like I said, still thinking about that decision, but I still have 10 weeks to decide. :)

And I guess that is a long enough update for today!  Next appt. will be July 14!

What I'm Wearing 2: 16 weeks, 5 days

These pics were actually of my outfit yesterday, so 16 weeks, 4 days. :)  But I didn't get around to posting till today.  This is one of my most favorite (so far) early pregnancy outfits for a day that's not too hot and not too cold.  I'm hoping the sweatshirt/hoodie top still stretches enough to fit in the fall too, so I can enjoy it then!  It will probably be too warm to wear in the middle of summer.  This was my first time trying these pregnancy jeans, and they are still a little big in the tummy, so I found myself hiking them up once in a while.  But I think they will be great when I get bigger!

 Outfit details: 

Tee (not maternity): Eddie Bauer (purchased secondhand from Twice)

Hoodie: (Liz Lange maternity) secondhand lot of clothes

Jeans: Motherhood (ditto)

Pasta necklace: birthday gift from one of my little Patch Club boys! :)

Bookworm necklace: Lisa Leonard

Sandals: Walmart, years ago :)

 Julia was my photographer this time.  I think you can see my baby bump a little better in this pic. :)

Not much to report in pregnancy news; I still have more than a week till my next midwife appt.  I am really enjoying this stage of pregnancy--trying to treasure it while it lasts, before I get more uncomfortable!  So far I've had very little discomfort except stretching ligaments, tiredness, etc. . . and I've been having off and on sciatic nerve trouble, as usual, but nothing too bad yet.  Last night the baby was moving a lot--the most I've felt at one time so far!  So that was fun.  I felt extra tired yesterday, so perhaps baby was having a growth spurt.  We got the kids to bed earlier than normal, and Jim and I were in bed by 9 pm, which is EARLY for us.  It felt so good!  I got a wonderful 9 hours of sleep and feel a lot more energized today.  I also finally got back to exercising this morning, after taking a few days off, and I know that helps with energy as well.  Can't believe I am almost at 17 weeks now . . . time is flying!