36 Weeks

How far along? 36 weeks

Total weight gain: I didn't weigh myself, but I wouldn't be surprised at a fairly big gain this week.

Maternity clothes? Nope, though my options in my closet are shrinking... hopefully I won't have to steal too many of Cody's shirts ;)

Stretch marks? Nothing new.

Sleep: Not bad. A little uncomfortable, but once about midnight-1am hits, I sleep pretty solidly until morning.

Best moment of the week: Playing with him through my belly in the bath!

Miss anything? Exercise, and being able to wear or carry Mackynzie.

Number of times I get up to pee at night: Oh goodness... between when I go  to bed and midnight-1am, i'd say around 2-5 times. Then usually only once or twice until  get up at about 5am.

Movement: Lots of bumps and pushes. hiccups radiate through his whole little body!

Food Cravings: Hmm, not really, but i've been reaching for more carbs so I must be burning more in this last stretch.

Anything making you queasy or sick: Nothing out of the norm- coffee breath, cigarette smoke, and fake/cheaply scented things.

Gender prediction: It's a boy!

Labor signs: Not that i'm aware of, but body is getting ready, for sure!

Symptoms: Achy back and a bit achy in my pelvis occasionally.

Belly button in or out? Out

Wedding rings on or off? On, but my fingers and toes are starting to get puffy in the evening time right before bed.

Happy or moody most of the time? Happy!

Looking forward to: Meeting this boy! and being 'home birth safe' next week!

 

35 Weeks

How far along? 35 weeks

Total weight gain: 156lbs this week, grand total of 26lbs so far.

Maternity clothes? No, but less and less is fitting!

Stretch marks? Nothing new.

Sleep: Good. Sleep just gets.. different at this point in pregnancy. I have been sleeping pretty heavily so that's nice.

Best moment of the week: Definitely my blessingway.

Miss anything? Just general things like bending and breathing and moving haha.

Number of times I get up to pee at night: 1-3 (sometimes WAY more if you count before midnight.)

Movement: Lots. Different this week.. wondering if he flipped posterior (still head down though) because i'm feeling some really knobby movement, and having a hard time locating him.

Food Cravings: None! Food sort of sucks lately. I just don't want to eat anything. It's too much work! (Don't worry, i'm still eating plenty ;) )

Anything making you queasy or sick: No, but I have noticed small bouts of nausea the closer we get.

Gender prediction: We are having a boy

Labor signs: I hope not.

Symptoms: Braxton hicks, and this week there has been tons of cervix pressure. If I get that 'gotta pee' feeling, I get braxton hicks if I don't go  immediately.

Belly button in or out? Out

Wedding rings on or off? On

Happy or moody most of the time? Happy!

Looking forward to: Meeting him! my body is working really hard now to accommodate a big baby (for my body), so although I'm savoring this time, I'm ready to meet him.

This week's video: 

Our baby Haul and Car Seat Decision

We went shopping for all of our baby and home birth supplies! It feels SO good to be done and have everything now. Here is the 'baby haul' of what we bought, plus the car seat we bought, and why we went with a bucket.

I will be posting my home birth and postpartum care supply video early this week, so keep an eye out for that! 

My essentials for baby #2!

The last Weeks: Week 2

See the intro to this project here

and week 1

You can follow this project daily on instagram: #rainbowspregnancyproject

January 7th: "I love watching you sleep. You are so peaceful and I can't stop staring. I often take this time to do a lot of self reflection and goal setting about being your mama. I can't promise you I won't mess up- I have. Or that I'll be perfect- I'm not. But I make a promise to you every single night, that I will continue to be better with each day. I will learn from today and even if it's just a tiny improvement, I will do better tomorrow. I will never stop learning and growing and trying. Thank you for being so forgiving. For understanding and always loving me. You teach me what life is really about, every day. Thank you, my sweet blessing, for allowing me to humbly grow with you."

January 8th: "today we did a lot of playing. You are so creative and funny with the games you come up with! You love to play with anything you can be creative with. Little figurines and things like this train and track. You invent stories, and have funny conversations. You remind me to let go and be a kid, no matter how old I am. Something I'm having to relearn, but you are the very best teacher."

January 9th: "this winter is special. We have played outside laughing until our bellies hurt! Rosy cheeks, cold noses, and frosty hair. We climb through huge snow drifts and rescue each other and laugh some more. I'm so happy to have this winter with just us. You really are my warm sunshine, Mackynzie Rei!"

January 10th: "each morning, you wake me up with a kiss and ask me to help you in the washroom, followed by requesting a light to be turned on. You then give me another kiss and play quietly on your own while I lay in bed and wake up fully. I can't get over how thoughtful and patient this is! After I've had a few minutes, you ask if I'm ready for breakfast. We hold hands, since I can't carry you right now, and go to the kitchen to make breakfast together. Thank you for these lovely mornings. I'll cherish these memories always."

January 11th: "today we ran our errands. You love this time because you love to play in the truck. You pack a bag of things to play with, and we spend the morning doing our usual; taking Carly to the dog park, grocery shopping, and going to any other needed store. Some Saturdays are our library day too. You make errands way more fun. Plus, hanging out in the truck with you is always a blast."

January 12th: "today was mama's blessingway. You invited your best little friend to play with while mama and our friends and family gathered in the living room. Your daddy hung out with you two and fed you guys yummy snacks and played with you! It was so much fun! We love watching you create special friendships. You two hug and kiss each other's cheeks all the way to the door, when it's time to say goodbye. Your little cup is always so full after playing with your friends. You choose not to have a lot of friends, but you sure make the friendships you decide to have count."

January 13th: "You have been signing since you were a baby. It was and is a huge factor in how mature you are in your speech, understanding, and emotional development. You are most proud of this one though. 'I love you'. It was hard to learn how to hold your fingers, but once you got it, you were so proud! You beam every time and love that we can send each other this little reminder. Especially when we are far away from each other, or too upset or shy to talk. I love you so much! In every language!"

34 Weeks

How far along? 34 weeks

Total weight gain: 155 this week. total of 25lbs so far.

Maternity clothes? No! I did break my coat zipper though.. whoops! hehe

Stretch marks? No new ones. I don't really want to say I won't get anymore,because I could really expand in these last weeks, but so far there is absolutely no sign of them happening.

Sleep: Pretty good. Still hard to get comfy most nights, but at this point I don't expect that to let up, so i'm just rolling with it.

Best moment of the week: Hmm.. It's been a good week! Baby/birth wise? Finalizing our home birth decision and meeting up with our beautiful doula!

Miss anything? I really can't say I do... wait, now that i'm thinking, I miss carrying around my girl :/ A lot..

Number of times I get up to pee at night: 1-3

Movement: Lots, big rolls and body parts sticking out. more scheduled though, where I can sort of expect movement at certain times.

Food Cravings: No cravings.

Anything making you queasy or sick: Not that I can think of!

Gender prediction: It's a boy

Labor signs: No

Symptoms: Braxton hicks, sore upper back, loosing my hair.

Belly button in or out? out

Wedding rings on or off? On

Happy or moody most of the time? Really happy! busy minded, but happy.

Looking forward to: Our birthing time! But before that, my blessingway this weekend and baby shopping next weekend!

So sorry about the dark lighting! I didn't have my handy camera man to help me check the lighting first ;)

The Last Weeks: Week 1

Click here to view the first post, explaining this project. Feel free to follow along via instagram at #rainbowspregnancyproject

December 31st: "There are about 6 weeks left that it's just the three of us. Mama is full term in 4. Although, you correct anyone who tells you your brother will be here soon, telling them he is already here and part of our family. You are so wise beyond your years, my love. Today we played 'burry' in the snow. You thought it was THE funniest thing. Those moments when we are looking at each other, belly laughing, are some of my very favorite. I hope we continue to have more and more as we grow together. Thank you for making me laugh. I love you."

January 1st: "today we spent the new year having some awesome family fun. We played and wrestled and laughed. Daddy and I took you to the sled hill so Carly could pull you down in your new sled. You walked home, admiring everything your little eyes saw. I'm so grateful to have you reminding me to stop and see the beauty in everything at all times. There is always time to enjoy the life around you. Thank you for always teaching me, even if you sometimes need to remind me."

 January 2nd: "Today, I decided to cut your hair. You were just bathed and sitting quietly, so I jumped on the opportunity. You refuse to see a hair dresser, and you are firm in "growing your hair long. Like mommy's", which I am perfectly and happily fine with. We talked about how we were going to have to trim it a little after christmas to keep it healthy and growing though. You didn't protest, but kept telling me you were nervous while I cut it. I can't say I blame you, I'm no hair dresser, but it turned out good all things considered! You were happy with it afterwards, and told me we could just never cut it short. I know how important your hair is to you; I'm honored to be allowed to cut it for you. Stay you, sweet girl. I love you!"

January 3rd: "Sharing sleep with you, has been one of the most grounding parts of motherhood for me. Hearing your soft sighs, cuddling close in the wee hours of the morning, waking to your smiling face; even when we have rough days, we are always brought back together by the night. Safe and still in the quiet, any troubles from our day forgotten. I know one day you will want your own space, but for right now, I'm grateful you choose to share your sleep with us. Xoxo"

January 4th: "you take such good care of our animals. They are so important to you. You have such a beautiful and tender heart, and you have always been connected to nature and animals on a deeper level. Something that really makes my soul happy to be able to share with you. These two dogs are your best friends. Whoever said diamonds are a girls best friend must have never had a dog to grow up with like you, my love!"

January 5th: "one of the most satisfying things for me is watching you and your daddy together. You have such a special and precious bond between you. He is your best friend, and your safe resting place. You both share an understanding that is yours alone. The relationship you have with your daddy, and the special things you share are different than with you and I, and I'm so thankful for that. You will learn things I could never teach you from him. He loves you with every ounce of his giant heart, and I know you love him with all of yours. I know you two will always play silly games and cuddle as close as you can forever. We love you! Xoxo"

January 6th: "teaching you is such a joy. You are so hungry for knowledge! I didn't expect to be homeschooling you while 8 1/2 months pregnant, but I'm happy we are. You couldn't wait a second longer. I may be your teacher, but I know that you have and you will teach ME far more than I could possibly teach you. I hope I'm always open to learn your precious and invaluable lessons."

Celebrating Our Son: A Mother's blessing, baby shower combo.

 This weekend is our baby shower-blessingway mash up to celebrate our little boy! I think it should be fun. We are having a small group of women over to celebrate and support for his upcoming birth. If you follow me via social media, then you probably already know about this, but if you don't, I wanted to put it up here as well.

We are welcoming anyone who wishes to participate in an online portion of our blessing way, from now, until the end of January. I have created an 'event' on facebook to better organize things, however I know not everyone uses facebook so I wanted to get this posted quickly.

If you have a facebook acount, you can view the event HERE.

If not, I will share what is written there, explaining what a blessingway is, and how you can participate from wherever you may be in the world!

Hi lovely ladies! 

**please stick with me as this is long, but important to include all the information.**

I sent out my invitations to my baby shower/blessingway mix this week, and I really want to include the beautiful community of women that surround me, but aren't close enough to be with me. 

My online community and support is very important to me, and I have gotten to know some really fantastic people.

I am opening up the blessing way portion of my baby shower, so that I can include ALL of the women who support me in my life.

I'm unsure how to explain this, so I'm going to paste a portion of my actual invitation to better explain what I am doing:

****
You must be wondering what the heck a 'blessingway' is, so let me tell you a bit about it.
A blessingway, is a traditional celebration to welcome a mother into a new stage of life when she is expecting a baby. It's an ancient tradition that centers mainly around women, and the expecting mother. I personally find this celebration very near to my heart, and rather than doing two separate events, I'd like to combine them, and have you help me celebrate this special time.
A traditional blessingway can be very ceremonial based, with poems and chants and feasts and special rituals, however, I have chosen to choose what suits me and only include a couple of things. One thing I have chosen to do, is a bead giving. This is where each guest brings a bead (or a couple if they should choose) that represents a wish or blessing they have for the mother during her birthing time. This can be anything from a blue bead, because it reminds you of being calm, to something that is said to keep mama and baby safe. After the shower, the mother then has enough beads with all these beautiful blessings and meanings attached to them, to make a necklace or bracelet to wear during her labor and birth. She can look at this and be reminded of all the wonderful women in her life, supporting her during this special time.
A blessingway is meant to create a support or 'net' of women for the mother, to fill her with positivity and good wishes before and during her birthing time.
The other things I plan to incorporate, would be each guest writing me and baby a note or blessing at the shower, that I can display or read through during labor to help keep me strong and grounded and lifted by the support of friends and family. I will also be giving each guest a candle at the end of the shower, so that they may light it whenever they want to send me some positive support, and for when I go into labor. This is said to send positive energy to mama and baby.

Now, I know many of you might be unfamiliar with such 'hippie' aspects to a baby shower, but as you have read, I have kept it to a minimal so there wont be any hand holding flower circles. The point of all of this is to come together as women, and show support and love to a mother about to transition into a new stage of life and growth. Regardless of how open you choose to express this sort of thing, I think everyone can support the sentiment behind it.

It's very important to me, to include the blessingway aspect and to have all the women in my life be able to be a part of this with me. So please, come help me celebrate this time and welcome our last child. Your support as a friend, and a woman, means a lot to me and I appreciate you maybe stepping out of your comfort zone to do so.
***
Now that you have a better idea of what the actual blessingway-baby shower will be like, here is where this online event comes in.

I want to open this event for you to be able to write on this wall any blessings or well-wishes you may have for baby and myself, from now until January. (but maybe I will keep it open until he is born if I can.)

I also welcome you to participate in the bead giving (only if you wish, of course). If you would like to send me a bead, from now until the end of January (so it gets to me before my guess date of February 18th.)

If you wish to send me a bead, personal message me and I will give you my address so that you can!

You are also welcome to post a photo of your lit candle here, if you should choose to partake in that way.

Thank you all so much for helping me honor this special time in our life. I want you to know that I truly appreciate you.

**ALL are welcome to participate! Whether you know me from my blog, or a social media site, know that you are a part of my community and are more than welcome to join me here.**


If you would like to participate, you can comment below and offer a blessing, or you can go to my contact page, and send me an email if you would like to keep it private, or for my address to send me a bead to add to my chain/necklace! Or of course, feel free to participate through the facebook event.

You can post a blessing whenever you would like! It doesnt need to be the day of the 'live' blessingway, however you are more than welcome to do it that way. I am closing it off  later in January though, to ensure I receive all the beads and blessings before he is born.

If you have any questions, please let me know.

Thank you SO MUCH for taking the time to read and or participate in this with us. I am blessed by each one of you!

XOX

My Pregnancy Essentials (Video)

33 Weeks

How far along? 33 weeks

Total weight gain: I didn't get a consistent number this week, so I'm just going to say 153. Total of 23lbs so far. (where the heck is it going?!)

Maternity clothes? No

Stretch marks? No new ones

Sleep: Pretty good! I keep waking up on my back which is bugging me, but I'm sleeping so there isn't much I can do!

Best moment of the week: Finalizing our home birth decision! It just feels amazing to let our hearts and instincts lead us to a decision. (we will be discussing more in the weeks to come.)

Miss anything? No, not that I can think of.

Number of times I get up to pee at night: 2-3 times.

Movement: Lots of movement, but it's getting less 'all the time' and more certain times, and bigger rolling movements.

Food Cravings: None. I like frozen blueberries and frozen mangos to snack on right now. Yum!

Anything making you queasy or sick: No

Labor signs: No

Symptoms: When he shifts positions it still can feel like a braxton hicks, I have to really feel out my uterus to be able to tell. Also, I have to watch how much I eat at once (which is a little frustrating) or I get what I can only explain as muscle cramps in some of my belly. Not enough room to eat too much haha.

Belly button in or out? Out

Wedding rings on or off?  On

Happy or moody most of the time? Very happy!!

Looking forward to: My baby shower/blessingway this weekend!

 

Blog challenge: Day 2- 20 Facts about me

1. I don't drink alcohol. Cody and I went on a 'beer hunt' for me a few months before I got pregnant, because I wanted to see if I could find one I liked. No luck. I just hate the taste of alcohol.

2.I don't swear. It's very rare to hear me genuinely cuss. However, I'm apparently a sailor in my sleep! Cody tells me I swear about things when I'm half awake. (for example, Cody will be coming to bed and i'll be like " what the F*** was that sound? I have no memory of swearing, but apparently I only say the F word.)

3. I don't drive. I don't have a licence and for Many reasons. I have no desire to get one.

4. I'm not necessarily scared of heights, but they make my entire body (especially my hands and feet) tingle like crazy.

5. Growing up I was always told I looked like Buffy the vampire slayer's little sister. I never saw it.

6. I go stir crazy very easily, and need to take frequent trips out of the house. Whether that means an outdoor activity, or a trip to the store. I just don't do well cooped up.

7. I love meerkats. I don't know if that's why I have a chihuahua, or if I like meerkats because I have a chihuahua.

8. I talk through movies. A lot. But only with Cody and he actually enjoys it.

9. I have no tattoos or piercings, apart from my ears.

10.I'm a list maker. I always have several lists going at once. I'm also a journal hoarder.

11. I'm only ticklish when I want to be. I can turn it on and off.

12. I'm a morning person, and don't do well past 10pm. In fact, if it gets too late, I get really hyper and goofy.

13. I love the ocean, but it also really freaks me out.

14. I can rocket saliva from underneath my tongue, otherwise known as 'gleeking'. Attractive, I know.

15. I used to be REALLY extroverted. Social butterfly, always wanting to be around people. Now that I'm older/a mom/ grounded in myself, I'm finding I really like to be alone with my little family. I do enjoy friends and going out, but it's much more specific, low key, and I don't like to be around too many people for too long.

16. I'm very outdoorsy. I need to have contact with nature all the time. Winter is really hard for me.

17. I am a deeply spiritual person, but I do not consider myself any specific religion.

18. I can't stand top 40 pop music. Or country.

19. I really don't like old movies or TV shows. I have no reason for it, they just bug me.

20. I have only just learned to dress for myself and nobody else. To wear what I feel good in and makes me happy.

The Last Weeks: A Photo Project

December 31st: 

 There are about 6 weeks left that it's just the three of us. Mama is full term in 4. Although, you correct anyone who tells you your brother will be here soon, telling them he is already here and part of our family. You are so wise beyond your years, my love. Today we played 'bury' in the snow. You thought it was THE funniest thing. Those moments when we are looking at each other, belly laughing, are some of my very favorite. I hope we continue to have more and more as we grow together. Thank you for making me laugh. I love you.

* * * * *

I am doing a photo project to document our last weeks as a family of three, before our sweet boy's arrival. I will be posting a photo and brief description/message every day for our last 6 weeks. I'm using Instagram to share the daily photos, and will recap each week here on the blog. Maybe creating a keepsake book for Mackynzie afterwards. 

 Feel free to follow along daily through instagram, or weekly through the blog.  

My Favorite Yoga Routine for Pregnancy

 As Grayson's arrival draws near, I am getting my body, mind, and soul ready for his birth and this new chapter. I feel so good about our preparations and am really looking forward to the birthing process.

I wanted to share with you my current favorite yoga routine for this last trimester. If  I would have come across it  sooner, It would most likely be a favorite all the way through pregnancy. This routine is good for every trimester of pregnancy, and would even be great for after birth when exercise is safe. 

 It's simple, relaxing, and really nourishes spirit, well-being, and connection to your body and baby. The instructor reminds me of a warm hug. Her accent makes it that much better. She really reminds me of the midwife you would want for pregnancy and birth.

There are three parts, and it's a great length for daily practice. I hope I can get time every day to do it morning and night.

*****

Part 1- Warm Up

Part 2- Main Routine

Part 3- Relaxation

I hope you enjoy these if you try them! 

Nameste, friends.