36 weeks Your baby is gaining about an ounce a day. She now weighs almost 6 pounds (like a crenshaw melon) and is more than 18 1/2 inches long. She's shedding most of the downy hair that covered her body, as well as the vernix caseosa, the waxy substance that protected her skin during her nine-month amniotic bath. Next week, your baby will be considered full-term. Most likely she's in a head-down position, but if she isn't, your practitioner may suggest scheduling an external cephalic version, where she'll try to turn your baby by manipulating her from the outside of your belly. Last time we went to the doctor baby girl was head down already. And I am pretty sure she is still that way now. We go back the the doctor the day before Thanksgiving to have another sonogram to check her growth and then we'll see the doctor after. Maybe walking around Busch Gardens yeserday will have helped me get something started

32 weeks pregnant By now, your baby weighs 3.75 pounds (pick up a large jicama) and is about 16.7 inches long, taking up a lot of space in your uterus. You're gaining about a pound a week and roughly half of that goes right to your baby. In fact, she'll gain a third to half of her birth weight during the next 7 weeks as she fattens up for survival outside the womb.

This is it for an update today. Everything with Baby and I are fine. Going to the doctor every 2 weeks now. Isabella is great! Steven is sick this week but hopefully it will pass quickly.

I, of course, would rather it be a bit less than 10 weeks but...

30 weeks Your baby's about 15.7 inches long now, and she weighs almost 3 pounds (like a head of cabbage). A pint and a half of amniotic fluid surrounds her, but that volume will decrease as she gets bigger and takes up more room in your uterus. Her eyesight continues to develop, though it's not very keen; even after she's born, she'll keep her eyes closed for a good part of the day. When she does open them, she'll respond to changes in light but will have 20/400 vision — which means she can only make out objects a few inches from her face. (Normal adult vision is 20/20.)

Just thought I would post something quick...30 weeks pregnant today and feeling every second of it. Baby is moving great and I do feel great for the most part. My back is starting to hurt and I definitely can't be on my feet as long as I would like but I am enjoying being pregnant. I love to se my belly jump! I go back to the doctor this Monday, the 12th. I am going every 2 weeks to appointments now. The end is near!

We are in Tennessee still and will be until Sunday. We are having a geat time getting to see family and doing some fun stuff around the area. Isabella loves it here. The weather has been great for the most part-very cool at the beginning of the week and some rain off and on but HOT today! I will have TONS of pictures to share when we get back.  

28 weeks pregnant By this week, your baby weighs two and a quarter pounds (like a Chinese cabbage) and measures 14.8 inches from the top of her head to her heels. She can open and close her eyes, which now sport lashes. This movement is more of a reflexive blink than a deliberate opening and closing, but it won't be long before she's batting those beauties at you.

Only 12 more weeks to go! I am hoping for less but expecting more. This baby girl is moving around liek CRAZY! It feels like she is jumping up and down and then her feet hit at the bottom of my stomach and then her head hits the top. Both Isabella and Steven can feel her move regularly. Isabella doesn't know quite what to think when my belly moves under her hand...but she still talks to her...well to my belly button. I am pretty sure she thinks the baby is only there ;) This baby seems to be way lower than Isabella was even up until she was born. I can pretty much always feel her at the bottom of my stomach and off an on throughout the day I have a lot of pressure in my pelvis...we will see if that is a good thing or a bad thing. If we didnt know she was a girl I would be guessing she was a boy by where she is carrying. I have a few maternity shirts that fit me up until the end of my pregnancy with Isabella that my stomach hangs out the bottom of so badly already.

Isabella is still semi-potty training. Slowly but surely. About every other day she attempt to use the potty. Not as successful as I would like, but we have to start somewhere. She is stubborn like Steven and I so there is no way I could push her to do more than she is ready for. Lets see...anything new with her...she is still talking a million miles a minute and we can actually understand most of what she says. Not that everyone can understand it, but we can for the most part.

She is really enjoying her birthday presents-all the puzzles and little toys are her favorites these days. And the easel we got her was a huge success. She would color the whole day if we let her. She is also getting more into playing with her baby dolls. She has played with them before but now is feeding, changing, putting them to bed, playing with them, having conversations with them. It is super cute.

She has just now realized (after sleeping in a toddler bed for 9 months) that if she's not really tired when she goes down for a nap she is able to get out of bed and play with her toys. So this week she has begun testing my patience with this. I lay her down, do all the bed time stuff, and shut the door. Then, a few minutes later, I hear her talking and go into her room and she has all her baby dolls and her monkey sitting in her bed and her entire tea set out playing with them. Despite how cute it was, I made her clean it all up and lay back down. She has tried this like 3 or 4 times each day when I have laid her down. Then the last time she tears up and these big crocodile tears start rolling down her cheeks...then I know she is actually going to go to bed.

We have been looking for a house. So far with no luck. We have seen some good houses and someone with a few thousand dollars saved up will have a great time doing some repairs before moving in. We did put an offer in on a house that was move in ready but we were outbid by someone who could pay the full asking price and that didn't need help with closing costs. So, it was not meant to be for us for that house. We hopefully will get to look at a couple of houses today. On Saturday, we are going to take a class for 1st time homebuyers to get a grant from the state to make a down payment on a house when we find one. Should be a good class with lots of new information.

Then October 1st we are going to begin driving to TN! We will actually go to Macon where Steven's biological mother lives and do lunch with her on the 1st. Then we will stay overnight at a hotel somewhere in Macon and head to Whitwell early the next morning. Isabella is sooooo excied to go! She talks all the time about all the cousins and family who are up there that she will get to see. She also knows we have made plans to ride on a real train and she is super excited about that! We will be back in Tampa on the 11th...probably late. I am not particularly looking forward to driving...being pregnant and all. But it is going to work out a bit cheaper for us now that we have to buy Isabella a ticket on an airplane. We are really looking forward to it and Steven sure needs the time off to relax a bit.

I go back to the doctor on Monday. I have my glucose test and a regular appointment to make sure I am ok to travel. Hopefully there are no surprises there. I probably wont update anything here until after we get back from TN. I know you are all going to be waiting eagerly to read my ramblings...;) 

On baby #2: 

The network of nerves in your baby's ears is better developed and more sensitive than before. She may now be able to hear both your voice and your partner's as you chat with each other. She's inhaling and exhaling small amounts of amniotic fluid, which is essential for the development of her lungs. These so-called breathing movements are also good practice for when she's born and takes that first gulp of air. And she's continuing to put on baby fat. She now weighs about a pound and two-thirds and measures 14 inches from head to heel. (babycenter.com)

I am feeling fine. Tired, from taking care of Isabella and being pregnant, but good for the most part. My hernia does not seem to have gotten too much worse. It doesn't bother me most of the time. I feel like I have to eat all the time. If I go too long without eating I either feel nauseous or shaky and weak. So I make sure to keep snacks in my purse at all times. I go back to the doctor on the 28th. I will have my glucose test and hear how the baby is doing. She moves around all the time so I don't worry too much about her

On Isabella:

She is doing well. She was 29 lbs and 35 in. tall at her 2 yr. check up. She was not happy about being there since we had just been there the week before having a staph infection drained...she didnt want Dr. Castellvi to get near her. And she definitely did not want us to have to hold her down for her shot. She recovered quickly with a lollipop and some juice.

We are attempting the potty training thing again...for the third time maybe. The only reason we are trying again right now is that she insists on stripping to the nude as soon as she comes in the house or wakes up in the morning. So, in order to justify her walking around naked....we are attempting to pee in the potty.

She has started having a major stutter. I am hoping it is something she will grow out of soon. It really frustrates her when she can't get a word out. And then she starts yelling because she has found that if she yells it is easier to say.

Monday afternoon she had a fever and it was off an on until yesterday afternoon so she has been laying around a lot so far this week.

I need to post some pics. Hopefully Isabella will nap today and I can do that.

See the big picture

How your baby's growing:

Your baby's growing steadily, having gained about 4 ounces since last week. That puts her at just over a pound. Since she's almost a foot long (picture an ear of corn), she cuts a pretty lean figure at this point, but her body is filling out proportionally and she'll soon start to plump up. Her brain is also growing quickly now, and her taste buds are continuing to develop. Her lungs are developing "branches" of the respiratory "tree" as well as cells that produce surfactant, a substance that will help her air sacs inflate once she hits the outside world. Her skin is still thin and translucent, but that will start to change soon.

This came from an internet site I look at frequently about baby stuff. Some of you may remember getting updates like this when I was pregnant with Isabella. I was better about it then, updating every week...not so much now.

Well as far as pregnancy goes for me everything is still going well. The baby is kicking like crazy. It seems she really likes Pastor Craig's accent (he is from Wales) because when he preaches she goes nuts! She is very active at like midnight and then at 5 am, but I do feel her a lot throughout the day. Isabella has to pull up my shirt at least once a day, if not a bunch more, to tell Baby Sister hi and tries to offer her toys and play with her. She gives her hugs and kisses too! It is soooo cute.

Tomorrow (Friday) we go for Isabella's 2 year check up and for my next OB appt. So I will update again after those.

Isabella's birthday was a success. Mostly family from around here came and a couple very close friends joined us at Picnic Island (a picnic/beach near our house) last Friday evening. We did it on Friday so Kyle could be there before he headed back to Talahassee and in the evening because it is too dang hot here to do an outdoor party during the day. The kids ran around kicking  abeach ball, swinging on the swings, and of course eating cake. All the adults got to hang out and visit and the breeze was constant so it kept us from all melting. Isabella was very excited for her party. She talked about it all week. And she is still talking about it. She had so much fun opening gifts...on her own pretty much, she opened each card before digging into the gift. It was precious.

Isabella moved up into the 2 yr. old nursery class last night. She loved it! I mean she has been in the 1 yr. old class since 10 months old. It was getting old for her. She wanted me to come with her when I dropped her off, but when I went to get her, she wasn't exactly ready to leave. On Sunday she will move up too...we will see how that goes. The past month or so she has been screaming and crying when I drop her off...don't know what that's about.

Steven is doing well. Keeping busy as usual. He just had like 25 new 6th grade boys (and a good handful of girls too) move up to his dept. yesterday...INSANE! The kids have just gone back to school here so they are busy trying to get stuff un place for the school year. He is also practicing right now with 2 different bands. The one he has been leading with and then the new one that is going to take over in Spetember. After this week he will only have to do one band. I guess in the next couple weeks it will slow down a bit and he can get some rest.

We are planning on going to Tn for about a week and a half in October and we are really looking forward to it!

A prayer request for thise of you who haven't heard: A couple from church, Kelly and Teresa Neilson, who had been trying to get pregnant for 7 years, had finally gotten pregnant about 25 weeks ago. Last Wednesday, at 23 1/2 weeks, her water broke. And then Monday night late/Tuesday morning early after an emergency c-section, they lost the baby. Keep them in your prayers. They are really questioning why God would allow their prayer for a child to be answered but then taken away from them. They need a lot of comfort.

So A LOT has gone since January when I wrote last...

No sense in updating you on all the things that you have seen pictures of. They kind of explain themselves!

But of course we have had some big news as of late...well not really...it has been a while. We are expecting a second little girl on December 17th!

To say I was overjoyed at just finding out I was pregnant again is an understatement. I was also overcome with anxiousness when at only 4 weeks pregnant we found out and I thought of all the time I had to worry whether or not this pregnancy would continue. Luckily as fast as the little blue plus sign showed up on the test, I also started having morning sickness. It was different than when I had Isabella. When I was pregnant with her, I could throw up and then feel fine. This time around it was the all day, no matter what I ate or drank, nausea. I did puke a few times but really I just felt awful around the clock.

As soon as we found out we were pregnant I called a doctor and made an appointment. Now, it was waaay to early for any doctor to want to see me so we had to wait 2 whole weeks to be seen. At that first visit we got to meet the wonderful midwife who will be taking care of us this time around and we got our first ultrasound! The midwife wanted us to have a sono because of my past history. And she said if they could find a heartbeat that early, my chances of miscarraige dropped drastically. Now, I didn't see anything on the screen but a gray blob and the tech assured me that that was in fact our baby and that it was totally normal for only being 6 weeks along. I also did not hear a heartbeat. The tech was having trouble hearing (which is also normal for that early on) so she made me hold my breath. She heard it and saw the heart beating!  This calmed my anxiousness quite a bit.

The fact that my nauseousness was not letting up either was a huge blessing. It kept me positive in that it is a good sign that my body was producing the hormones it was supposed to. We went back again at 12 weeks for a routine appointment and got to hear the hearbeat again! All was good. We were very thankful to be able to hear that sound!!!

My nausea let up soon after our 12 week appointment. I still had bouts of it here and there but nothing like before.  Around the 4th of July I began to feel what I was pretty sure was fetal movement. Those little bloops I felt were distinct enough to not think that it was just gas. As I kept feeling them over the next couple weeks I was sure that it was our baby I was feeling. At 17 weeks we went back and again all was well. I wanted to go ahead and have our big ultrasound the next week but our midwife told me that it was best to wait until closer to 20 weeks. So, because we were going out of town when I was 19 weeks, I had to wait until I was 20 weeks to have the sono.

Isabella and I went to TN to visit Steven's family while he was at camp in GA with the students. Both trips were awesome!

Isabella is much more aware of this pregnancy that I was expecting. She definitely noticed when I was sick and that I wanted to lay down when she was playing during the day because I was so tired. But she seems to get (in whatever capacity an almost 2 year old can get it) That there is a baby in my belly. She loves to look at the sono pictures. She talks about the baby, lays her head on my belly, gives it a kiss and then tells me "I'm sweet!" And she is. She tells me also that she has a baby in her belly too...of course I tell her only mommies can have babies in their bellies. She has also been taking care of her baby dolls more. She rocks them and feeds them and gives them hugs and kisses. Hopefully these are all good signs...to offset the clingy, whiny, fit pitching, and recent axiety of separation things she is oging through that we wont get into ;)

So at 20 weeks we went in for our sono. Evryone kept asking me what I thought about this one, if I had any hunches. I really didn't. I mean I wasn't showing as early with Isabella. The nausea was totally different and other than that it was pretty much the same. I knew that financially for us it would be easier if we had another girl. But I would be equally excited about having a little brother for Isabella. Steven was leanign more toward the boy side, along with everyone else it seemed. Everyone swore I was going to have a biy the could "just feel it". Anyway, we took Isabella with us to the sono because we thought she would like to be in the dark room and see the baby on the screen. And the whole way down the hall she was telling everyone how she was going to see the baby in mommy's belly. It was sooo preious. But all that changed once the sono started. She wanted to be anywhere but in Daddy's lap watching. So, unfortunantely for Steven he did not have a great experience finding out the sex of our second child. Everything looked great as far as the baby was concerned and we found out we were having a girl!

I think Steven was a little disappointed abuout not having a boy. Just because he thought it would be good to have one of each...but I think he is super excited now! And he has realized that financially it will be better for us because everything we have is girlie girl to the max and if we had a boy that just wouldnt work.

So here we are at 21 weeks. I am feeling the baby move much more often and much more forceful before. Sometimes if she is really excited late at night I can actually see my stomach move. Steven has tried to feel her and thins he has a couple times, but nothing super definitive. I can't wait for that because I feel like he is missing out when he can't feel it. I am feeling good except for the hernia I have. It is in my belly button and its getting worse by the day. At my appointment I asked te midwife what the bulge was coming from just below my belly button and she said it was more than likely a hernia and that they wouldn't do anything about it during my pregnancy. That is, unless, it begins to strangulate my bowels. Otherwise I just have to deal with it for the next 19 weeks.

We are also getting ready for Isabella's 2nd birthday!!! I can't believe that we have been so lucky to be her parents for 2 whole years already! I will write more about that later. My elbows are hurting from typing so much. I will make sure to write more often so I don't have to write as much!

Well I figured I would update you on our life since Christmas...

Isabella is now 17 months old. I converted her crib to a toddler bed a week or so ago and it has been a success. I decided to change it because she was eating the crib railing and I was tired of her nice real wood crib getting ruined. I wasn't expecting her to transition so well, but she did great! The first night she got up at 3:30 am, Steven had fallen asleep on the couch, and he hears "Hi!" at the end of the couch. That night she ended up in bed with us, not bad for the first night though. The next night was pretty much the same. Her naps during the day were a little harder but that is partly because she has just recently transitioned to only one nap a day instead of two. She has been going to bed around 8 and not waking up until 7:30 or so. And when she gets up she has been sitting up in the bed talking to herself waiting for one of us to come get her.

Isabella is talking up a storm, you can read all the words she says in my previous journal, and over all doing great. She is running, trying to jump, and just playing hard all the time. She goes back and forth deciding whether she wants to be a picky eater or not. Like on Sunday all she would eat was french fries, but yesterday ate anything. She loves hotdogs pretty much any day!

Isabella also got a new cousin since Christmas. Peter George Ramos was born on Jan 9. He was 9lbs!!! Isabella loves him to death. She likes to hold him and give him lots of kisses.

Shortly after Peter was born my sister was hospitalized with postpartum cardiomyopathy. Her heart was performing at only 20% and so her body wasn't processing fluid like it should have so her lungs were filling up. Long story short...she is home now and doing well. She is going to be on heart meds for a while. There is no real way of knowing exactly what caused it except that it is connected to pregnancy. We got to spend a lot of time with Peter during his first 2 weeks of life and we really enjoyed it. But I am glad my sister is home and getting to spend time with her boy!

Things at church are going well. Steven is a very busy man. There are a lot of awesome changes coming up.

On February 12 we are going to Bristol!!! Steven got asked to lead praise and worship for a church youth group's winter retreat in Myrtle Beach. So, we are flying into Bristol a couple days early to see old friends. We are really excited about it!

I think that covers it for the most part...