Each Monday, I'd like to do a  highlights post , including a picture, summarizing the differences in my pregnancy from week to week.  I totally "grabbed" this idea from  Kelly .  I've done this with my three previous pregnancies (you can go to the search box and type in "pregnancy," or "week #" if you're interested in how my previous pregnancies progressed), as well, and I still think it is a great way to jot down the things that I don't want to forget later on.   Pregnancy Highlights: How far along :  20 weeks  Size of baby:   This little one is about 10 inches long (head to toe) and curled up is about the length of a small banana.  Total weight gain/loss :  I'm up 7 pounds total as of my last appointment. I'll have another one this week, so I'll be up-to-date :) Maternity clothes:   spaghetti strap shirts, loose skirts or summery dresses, and cute/comfy shorts Gender:  ...

1. So our baby got his first gift yesterday --  two new, adorable Woombies to keep him snug as a bug this winter and help prevent that awful startle reflex from disturbing his sweet, sweet slumber! Thank you, Nana and Grandpa! 2.  These two can be fighting and hollering about a toy one minute and then incredibly sweet to one another the next. I usually have them sit in chairs a distance away from one another for their 30 minutes of TV time in the mornings, but today they plopped down on the rug when we came inside from playing outside , and I thought I'd test out how well they'd do sitting that closely to one another.  And, 20 minutes in they were still sitting like that.  Ella actually did much better sitting right next to Jack than she normally does sitting on her own. She typically likes to roam around, and I have to tell her repeatedly to sit down and enjoy her show. Not today :) Not even once!

Each Monday, I'd like to do a  highlights post , including a picture, summarizing the differences in my pregnancy from week to week.  I totally "grabbed" this idea from  Kelly .  I've done this with my three previous pregnancies (you can go to the search box and type in "pregnancy," or "week #" if you're interested in how my previous pregnancies progressed), as well, and I still think it is a great way to jot down the things that I don't want to forget later on.   Pregnancy Highlights: How far along :  19 weeks  Size of baby:   This little one is about 6 inches long (top of head to tip of tailbone) and is about the size of an heirloom tomato.  Total weight gain/loss :  I'm up 7 pounds total so far.  Maternity clothes:   mostly I wear spaghetti strap shirts, loose skirts or summery dresses, and cute/comfy shorts Gender:   boy :) 💙 Movement :  I (and The Husband and Jack) have felt him move so much this week!...

1.  I had an ARD meeting for Jack today at our local elementary. He qualifies for some help with his speech, in the skill of articulation (he tends to leave off endings of words which often makes his speech hard to understand), and he will be going twice a week for thirty minutes each time starting in two or three weeks. I'm happy he's getting help beyond what we've been able to get him at home. Hopefully, this year of specialized attention and practice at home will help him speak more clearly so that he can express his precious and intelligent thoughts to those around him :).  2. Box time = fun time!  3. This broccoli dish that I first started fixing a couple of weeks ago is seriously like veggie crack. Not that I know what crack is like. But, y'all. I could eat this all day. I AM NOT one of those lucky pregnant gals who craves only fruit and veggies. Bwahahahaha.  I crave stuff that is not great for me. But this. THIS.  So, anywho, I didn't have two bags of fr...

Today I'm thankful for my husband who is quick-thinking and caring.  I went into the bathroom earlier and a wave of dizziness and hot flashes and cold sweats came over me all at once. I ended up lying on the floor. The door was shut and locked. I called for help, but he couldn't hear me because my voice wasn't strong enough. So I found energy and kicked the wall. I heard him running. He tried to get the door open and found it locked. I tried to tell him where the key is hidden (you know, in case a kiddo locks himself/herself in there), but he couldn't hear me. So he busted the lock. And the door. And the door frame. But he got in.  He took care of me. He talked to The Bestie, who came over after seeing a patient. Low-blood pressure. Supposed to rest with my feet up. Must follow her orders :). So I tried. He went and picked up healthy lunches for all of us from a local restaurant run by a local family. They serve super healthy and very delicious meals, so that worked out...

(Source:   http://www.womansday.com/health-fitness/g2318/healthy-lifestyle-quotes/? ) (Source:  https://tryit1nce.wordpress.com/2014/03/14/and-heres-some-inspirational-words/ ) (Source:  http://www.isagenix.com/  and http://isafyi.com/isagenix-products-are-affordable-they-could-even-save-you-money/ ) (Source:  https://thenutritionguruandthechef.wordpress.com/2012/10/19/unhealthy-food-costs-you-your-health/ ) (Source:  http://www.isagenix.com/ ) (Source:  http://www.sprint2thetable.com/2013/09/what-i-ate-in-san-francisco/ ) (Source:  http://robolikesifit.tumblr.com/post/127499564876 ) (Source:  http://www.isagenixhealth.net/brain-boost-renewal-improves-cognitive-function-in-middle-aged-adults/ )

Each Monday, I'd like to do a  highlights post , including a picture, summarizing the differences in my pregnancy from week to week.  I totally "grabbed" this idea from  Kelly .  I've done this with my three previous pregnancies (you can go to the search box and type in "pregnancy," or "week #" if you're interested in how my previous pregnancies progressed), as well, and I still think it is a great way to jot down the things that I don't want to forget later on.   Pregnancy Highlights: How far along :  18 weeks  Size of baby:   This little one is about 5.5 inches long (top of head to tip of tailbone) and weighs about as much as a bell pepper.  Total weight gain/loss :  I'm up 7 pounds total so far.  Maternity clothes:   mostly I wear spaghetti strap shirts, loose skirts or summery dresses, and cute/comfy shorts Gender:   boy :) 💙 Movement :  I have felt a few flutters here and there :) Sleep :  Sleep h...

The Husband has been hard at work doing his 30-day cleanse. And by The Husband, I mean me. He's reaping the benefits of my hard work, haha, but if it helps him feel better and have more energy and get his metabolism back on track, then I will continue doing what I can to help.  Day 5 started last night since his daily schedule is backwards from the average person.  For breakfast (9pm), I fixed him a creamy Dutch chocolate isalean shake. I mixed it in the blender with about 10 ounces of water (the chocolate is much better with more water, in our opinion) and a handful of frozen mixed berries. The chocolate is not our favorite (but the vanilla rocks our socks off!), but with berries it's flavor is pretty good.   I sent him to work with these two snacks. He eats one around 1am.  Then, sometime between 3 and 4am for his lunch, he mixes up a shake in the shaker that came with our order. If had I to guess, I'd say he mixed up the strawberry cream.  Around 6:30 or 7am,...

Each Monday, I'd like to do a  highlights post , including a picture, summarizing the differences in my pregnancy from week to week.  I totally "grabbed" this idea from  Kelly .  I've done this with my three previous pregnancies (you can go to the search box and type in "pregnancy," or "week #" if you're interested in how my previous pregnancies progressed), as well, and I still think it is a great way to jot down the things that I don't want to forget later on.   Pregnancy Highlights: How far along :  17 weeks  Size of baby:   This little one is about 5 inches long (top of head to tip of tailbone) and weighs about as much as a turnip.  Total weight gain/loss :  I'm up 7 pounds total so far.  Maternity clothes:   mostly I wear spaghetti strap shirts, loose skirts or summery dresses, and cute/comfy shorts Gender:   boy :) 💙 Movement :  I have felt a f...

**Hehehehe. My blog post title made me giggle.** If you stayed tuned and saw on FB that we'd be announcing this afternoon, then you're in luck.  So, without further adieu, Jack and Ella will be doing the honors.  Now, go on ahead and post in the comments what you guessed :) I was right early on but then changed my mind, so any guess was a good one!

I have fixed all of the meals for The Husband today, and I wrote out a schedule for him to follow while at work in the evenings.  Here's what he ate today. It was far easier than I thought it would be, and everything was provided for us except the snacks.  Breakfast - chocolate (not his favorite, but he said it wasn't bad. I may add in some frozen raspberries occasionally.) Snack - (salted/roasted - no oil) - about three and a half hours later  Lunch - (I found the package of 5 fillets in the frozen section. They were a huge hit. Yay for coupons! I added a teaspoon of olive oil to his mashed potatoes and a teaspoon to his green beans for his portion of good fats.) Snack - pistachios and apple slices Dinner - vanilla with a handful of frozen strawberries (he loved it--we'll definitely be ordering some individual containers of this flavor next month to help maintain!) So that was his first day. We also took his measurements and weight ...

Well, folks. Here it is. The very last gender poll I will ever post on this blog. So have at it. :) And if you're especially good, and we get lots of guesses, then we just might reveal earlier than we had planned ;) What do you think? Will Jack & Ella be receiving a little brother or a little sister this winter? It's a BOY! Why didn't we keep any of those cute boy things? It's a GIRL! Phew! We're so glad we kept all of those cute girl things! pollcode.com free polls

I had my 16-week prenatal appointment this morning. I also had to have an ultrasound to check on cervix length.  The length looks good (something they want to monitor VERY often--ugh), but more excitingly (that's a word, right?), we found out the sex of the baby............... ....................Which we'll be sharing with friends and family (and with you all) very soon! I wish I could share a picture from today with you, but the technician labeled the sweet snapshot with "It's a _______," so that doesn't work ;) You'll just have to enjoy this picture of my growing belly and my super cute shorts . You're welcome.  Now to pick out the name. Sigh. The Husband and I struggle with seeing eye to eye on names.  In other exciting news----we got his box in!!!!  If you haven't checked it out yet or are still on the fence, go check out the great items they offer and chat with me on FB or drop me a text or email if we're in real life friends.  http://joy...

A few weeks ago, while we were on our anniversary trip in fact, we sat down with our friend Tina. I have known Tina for over 8 years, and her son, Ryan, was my man-of-honor in our wedding :) I kind of adore her and that family.  Anywho, somehow we started talking about The Husband's health and how things have really taken an unpleasant turn. She, as a licensed and highly-educated nutritionist, whom I love and trust and respect immensely, discussed making adjustments to his diet, and highly recommended that he try out these shakes her family and many of their friends have been supplementing with. They're clean and healthy and have that perfect 40-30-30 ratio of protein, fats, and carbs (they use undenatured whey protein, or there's the vegan ones if whey is difficult to digest). Granted, eating healthy solid meals with fewer calories is ideal, but financially that would be a huge burden since those healthy, non-GMO, organic products are pretty expensive compared to the ...