8 weeks

How far along? 8 weeks!

Total weight gain: probably none yet. if anything i've lost it. but we don't own a scale.
maybe i'll go buy one. or just use my mom's.

Maternity clothes? obviously not yet. but i do live in sweat pants.

Sleep: overall my sleep hasn't changed yet. there have been a couple nights that i've woken up and instead of just falling back asleep like usual i have felt very nauseous and had to eat something before i could sleep. but thankfully that's not the norm. i have been soo exhausted and am usually in bed bed by 9. it would be earlier but my introverted self craves time to myself so desperately that i sacrifice sleep for it. although i'm just laying half asleep on the couch anyway so really i should just go to bed.
weeks 5 and 6 i was going to bed when S was at 7 ish. but i haven't been quite as tired this week. probably because all i do all day is lay on the couch.

Best moment this week: scarlett prayed for the babies for the first time last week. oh my heart. she has prayed for them almost everyday since so i know those will continue to be some of my favorite moments in the future. "JESUS. i need you protect babies. please hold onto them so they don't get lost. i love you soo much. i need you to come here and be in our hearts. bye."


Worst moment this week: this one time i puked....or rather dry heaved over the toilet for like 5 minutes before finally puking up some stomach bile. that was the best. i cried.

Miss anything? feeling human. playing with scarlett. saying YES to scarlett. being able to stuff my face with food instead of nibbling at it over hours.

Cravings: i had a dorito craving at one point because i saw a picture of someone eating them on facebook. caesar salad at one point. fresh fruit. but those were in weeks 5 and 6....what I crave now is relief. i mostly eat bread and butter and baked potatoes.

Symptoms: a lot of nausea...some throwing up. fatigue. i was peeing a ton before i started to feel really sick, now i barely drink anything because i just throw it up. i do try to sip a little at a time but honestly it's hard to remember and it upsets my stomach. i'm a little concerned about staying hydrated.

Looking forward to: what am i not looking forward to?! ... i guess right at this moment i'm looking forward to just not feeling nauseous anymore. which i'm hoping will be no later than the start of my second trimester :)


this week i was released from my RE's office. they typically release you after seeing babies heartbeat twice. i then had my first prenatal appt with my regular OB the day i turned 8 weeks.or rather the nurse practioner, Lindsey. it was pretty basic. but my next appt is not until i rech 12 weeks - which feels like forever since i was going once a week to my RE!


***this was written a week ago when i reached week 8 but i didn't publish it until today because i thought i would get pictures up. but that didn't happen.***

mommy daughter time

i love my girl.

and something i love doing with her is dancing.

i don't know when it happened but a nightly dance party is now apart of our routine.

in the hour before alex gets home from work, i put some fun music on --

recently it has been christmas!

as soon as it is on scar knows what's comin and she reaches excitedly up for me to pick her up.
we dance, i run her around and slide across the wood floors.
that's her favorite.

it is also a great work out for me ;)

it has become such a special time for us and i look forward to it every day.

this was us sliding...i really wasn't trying to push the camera away :)

my baby is one!

i cannot put into words how much i love this little girl of mine.

i love being a momma.


i couldn't wait to have a baby. those close to me during that time would probably laugh and say that that's putting it mildly ;) i was so excited and felt so ready to be a mom. in the midst of my excitement i was also preparing myself for all the sacrifices that i would have to make after having a child.
i expected to be giving things up all the time for her.
and i guess i have given things up. like sleep...a lot of sleep. and there certainly have been times where i wasn't able to go be with friends because she needed me. i've had to turn down invitations a couple times from friends or family that in the days before having s i would have been all over. and i'm not gonna lie. sometimes that's hard. but a sacrifice?

does it really count as sacrifice if the alternative is better than the thing you're turning down? 

i wouldn't give up my time with her for anything.
even more sleep.

...

so. one whole year.

i have absolutely loved watching her grow and learn...and just be.
who knew watching someone look at a book could be so mesmerizing?

she has more than tripled her weight in this first year.
she now weighs 28 lbs and is approximately 30 inches long. (i was having a really hard time trying to measure her haha)
she hasn't really gained much in the last couple months. she's definitely hit a plateau.

i would say she's about 50/50 on eating solids and breastfeeding.
she loves food but seems to still prefer nursing just a little bit more. she will pretty much eat anything but i guess some of her favorites are raspberries, most meat, ak-mak crackers and pasta.

she's constantly moving these days.
not yet walking on her own but is always cruising the furniture and is standing on her own more and more....especially in the last few days. on sunday she actually took her first couple tiny, wobbly steps all on her own!....none since then.

she loves bellybuttons! and will show you hers if you ask. well if she knows you she will show you...if she doesn't know you she's too distracted by getting to know you to care about belly buttons.

she loves music and dancing! anytime she hears music she's swayin or bouncin...going from foot to foot while she holds onto something and shakes her little booty. she could not be cuter.
even if she hears the word music she will start dancing a little in preparation thinking we're going to put music on. hahaha

she loves her family. all her aunts and uncles and grandmas and grandpas. and very much of the time will choose them over mom and dad. ha.
with certain people she doesn't know she is a little tentative, with others she will go right to them if we let her.

she loves BOOKS! definitely her favorite "toy" right now. we read together all the time. or she sits and flips thru and looks at the pages by herself.

she loves putting things around her neck...necklaces, daddy's dress socks, towels...really anything she can find. and then she will just crawl around with it on her.

this is another favorite of hers :)

i have watched her go from this....

to this...

my little adventurer.
a little girl that has no problem letting her preferences be known. that likes to
give wet kisses and snuggle with a book.
she also loves long boarding. 

she is so much fun.


thank you, scarlett, for making my life more beautiful and more joyful than i ever could have imagined.
you are loved.

{birthday pictures coming soon!}

joy

i have so much fun with scarlett! 

her smile is contagious. i can't help but feel happy around her, she brings so much joy to my heart. i'm loving this age! she's learning and discovering new things all the time. except rolling over!

 the girl will not roll over. haha i think it's more funny than anything else. she'll get so close but then she's just kinna like.."eh no. don't feel like it". and that is fine with me--she will roll over when she wants to! 

she soo wants to get movin tho! i think she thinks she can crawl.

                                                                                                                                                                                    i enjoy every second with her. and i hope she always knows and feels enjoyed.

                                                                   



with you comes joy baby girl.

                                 

i pray.

recently as i've been praying for scarlett this verse has come to mind...

"[your beauty].... should be that of your inner self, 

the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God's sight."

1 peter 3:3-4

scarlett has such a sweet spirit. she is calm and already so affectionate. my guess is she is going to be all about touch like her momma :) i look at her as she sleeps so soundly and sweetly (alright sometimes it's not so sound so then i pray for that too! ;) and i imagine her growing up in this world and being hurt, i think about how while i will never intend to, somehow, some way i will be the one to hurt her. and my heart breaks. 

and i cry. i want so much to protect her from everything. but i know i can't.

so i pray.

 i pray hard. more than anything i want her to know Jesus.

 i want her to experience His love. His grace. His mercy. His protection. because tho i have fought it in the past--only with Jesus am i completely free. so i pray. i pray that i will be the mom God has called me to be...one of grace and forgiveness.