Long overdue update

last time i posted, i was just a little over 20 weeks pregnant. i am now almost 31 weeks. this pregnancy feels like it is much smoother and faster than the first. probably because i don't have as much time to dwell on every little thing. this baby seems to be a lot more active than gemma (who was plenty active in the womb) but i can actually see more movement and limbs poking out this time.

i had to do another 1 hour glucose test, then the 3 hour glucose test. besides the wicked bruising left from the 4 blood draws i left unharmed and not diabetic. i did have a chance to spend a good portion of my 3 hr test chatting with a new mom who was an accounting professor. made time go a lot faster. the swelling this time around has been really minimal. every now and then my feet look like "big trouble, little china" and i have ridiculous sausage fingers but it never lasts very long. the heartburn is bad and i have started throwing up again every few days or so because of it. but i swear it was much worse with gemma.

my weight gain has creeped up on me. i am at a total of 24 lbs.

my doc says i am measuring a few weeks big (like 33 weeks instead of 31) but it has been consistent all pregnancy. she'll do an ultrasound at 38 weeks to get a better idea of how big this kid will be. (picture at 28 weeks)



we had a lovely easter. gemma got to look for eggs at our house and at her uncle vincent's. she enjoyed what she received in her easter basket (new books, 2 singamajigs, and fruit snacks). my brother set up a slip n slide at his house, which she absolutely loved. she definitely is a water baby.


we been going to several playdates over the last few months. the women are great and gemma always seems to have a good time. we've been to several splash pads, the phx zoo, a few homes, and even a chandler public pool. she just loved the pool. i think we will be going there a lot.



her cousin vivia (who is 1 month younger) is now walking and i can't wait to see what the two of them will get into. they still play separately when together but they have their moments of sweetness. little hugs and kisses and chatter.

lincoln and i took our first trip away from gemma to sedona. not only was it hard to leave her, but we had to take our poor diabetic pico into consideration. someone was going to have to be responsible for his 2x a day shots. gemma split her time between her 2 grandmas in globe (they live a street apart) and pico and myla stayed at my mother's house. it has been over 17 months since we traveled a long distance with the dogs so myla got a little carsick and barfed several times on the way up. it kinda set a bad mood for the trip.

sedona was fun. our room was nice and super comfortable. the hotel had a great courtyard and heated pool. plus the creek was running right behind it. it was just a short distance (hike) to the main street of uptown sedona so we walked up there for meals. we took a trolley to see some sights. plus, we did some of our own driving around. it really is beautiful.

being 7 months pregnant and all, i wasn't up for much hiking. i was easily worn out from just the walk from the hotel. plus the town seems to shut down by 8pm and the weather in the evenings was in the 40s. we actually watched a lot of cable (royal wedding coverage) and even went to see a movie. i had really hoped to get a chance to sleep in but baby boy keeps me up and i seem to have an internal alarm clock set before 7 which is usually when gem starts her complaining.

on our way back to globe to pick up gem and the pups, we went by jerome. it is such a neat little town with an interesting history. we had lunch in the haunted grand hotel. linc wanted to explore but i was too chicken.

we tried a bunch of different restaurants while on our trip but always seemed to get something that was only so-so. the best meal i had all weekend was the one on sunday night when we picked up gem. my dad grilled steaks. i think he is the best bbq-er i know.

i missed gem a lot and kept looking at my phone with all her pictures and videos. but it was easier than i thought it would be and i am grateful we did it.

lincoln has been home for the last few weeks on short term disability due to his bad back. it is a yearly occurrence. he has two bad discs (L4 & L5) that act up, especially with his line of work. he has finally received some better answers this time around from his docs and has a better idea of how to manage it. he has started pt 2x a week and just today he went to the doc and received an epidural in his discs. he was a little nervous about it especially after witnessing mine during labor but it was an in & out procedure. hopefully it will be beneficial.

since he has been home he has been able to do some fun things with gem. we went to the phx zoo (i finally got my annual pass), marley farms (i think lincoln enjoys the animals more than gem), the pool, and plenty of playgrounds. he's been able to put gem to bed (which she loves and sometimes makes me sad when she asks for dada instead of mama). he's been around for her first real words and silly little antics. and he also has witnessed her naughtiness. i think he has a better understanding of just how tiring and difficult staying home can be.

i think that covers the last few months. maybe i will get back to updating regularly. maybe i'll even find a nice layout/background. no promises.