*Week 17 Pregnancy Highlights- January 1, 2014

How Far Along: 17 Weeks 

Size of Baby: an onion

Appointment Updates: I had my last appointment on December 23rd which was a very quick appointment. The heartbeat has been in the 160's which wives tales say is a girl but who knows. My weight gain/loss has stayed stable so that is a plus. I did have the flu the week before so that could have been why. Our next appointment is on January 20th and it will be another ultrasound. We are still debating if we will bring Hayden with. 

Symptoms: Up until week 15 I had quite a lot of morning/afternoon sickness almost every other day. The doctor suggested that I suck on Jolly Ranchers so that seemed to help a bit. Lately head pressure is back into full swing as I wake up with a headache and dry nose every morning. I have began sleeping slightly upright in bed which is helping a bit. Just recently, I have been able to stay up a little later than 8:30. Last night was New Year's Eve and Josh nor I were able to make it up until midnight. 

Cravings: I would have to say most of my cravings lately have been salty items like Doritos. Don't get me wrong, I love eating the chocolates I made with Kelsey and Nancy over the holidays. 

Weekly/Monthly News: Hayden got a baby doll for Christmas and has began picking it up on his own, putting the nuk in it's mouth, and giving it kisses. 

I am pretty sure I am feeling the baby move and can't wait for Josh and Hayden to feel it. 

I think it is safe to say that I popped over break so I am in that awkward stage of wearing or not wearing maternity clothes. We shopped for dress pants over break but had no luck, as nothing fit right. I do love being pregnant and popping is a great visual reminder that baby #2 will be here in 23 short weeks.

Just some of my favorite memories from Christmas:
- seeing the joy and excitement of Hayden playing with his new workbench and kitchen at Nana & Grandpa's house
- Santa being able to come early for Hayden so the three of us could enjoy quiet time together
- Hayden devouring his first slice of pumpkin log at Great G & G Heinen's
- Hayden insisting he sit at the little kid table with his Pasiewicz cousins
- receiving a homemade snowman ornament from my 94 year old grandma
- teaching Alyssa how to make Grandma Judie's sugar cookies so Hayden could eat more than his fair share
- being able to wake  at my parent's house on Christmas morning to continue the tradition of my grandparents coming down to watch us open presents
- being blessed to sit with my Grandpa to open my presents for the past 27 years and having Hayden able to sit with us, even if it was for only a few minutes
- having another TeBeest Christmas with everyone at Great Grandma T's house
- the little moments wit Hayden (him coming up to me to say "Hi, Mom", him signing and saying please when he wants something, and all of our "pretend play"- kitchen, workbench, tent)

Prayers: I have loved staying home with Hayden over this long break as he is growing more and more into a little toddler. Please pray that God calms my anxieties about going back to work tomorrow and the plan He has for me becomes clearer. 

Baby Bump:

16 weeks

Our Family is Growing!!!!!!

Pregnancy Highlights from 11/09/2013

Our family is growing and we are all excited yet anxious to become a family of four. My cycle has not been regular for the last few months so determining if aunt flo was on time or late was a challenge. After a few days of major curiosity, I took a Dollar Store test (Yes, they work great!) and it was immediately positive. As I was in quite shock, I was able to hide it from Josh all day. To announce baby #2, I bought a book I'm Going to Be a Big Brother that we all sat down and read before Hayden's bed. I don't think Josh would have noticed so quickly if he hadn't seen the iPad I set up to record his reactions. Josh was ready for another baby months ago so he was very excited.  

How Far Along: 9 Weeks (our weeks change on Wednesdays)

Size of Baby: a green olive

Appointment Updates: We had our first appointment on Tuesday, November 5th and it felt like we were just there. Doctor Stumpf went over all the basics with us and then we got to see and here Baby #2. The baby is so tiny yet in the 3D system it moved it's hands and feet for us which was breathtaking. We had calculated our due date for June 4th which would have been 10 weeks but the baby is measuring at 9 weeks so June 11th is our big day!! Hayden arrived on my first week of school last year and this baby will hopefully arrive on my last week of school this year.

Symptoms: Surprise, surprise . . . my biggest symptom is sleep. I am back to averaging 10 to 12 hours of sleep per night. Poor Josh and I tuck Hayden in around 7:15 and then I am right behind him. Taking showers is also difficult again because I love hot showers but then I overheat and need to rest. I am also feeling queasy throughout the day but morning especially. Some foods are quite repulsive to me but it changes so frequently. My stomach is feeling so full lately that I am picking at it a lot.

Cravings: I can't say I am stuck on one thing but potato chips with the Bieniek barbecue dip has been my go to.

Making the Announcement: We told my parents when they were up on a Tuesday night to watch Hayden. It didn't go as smoothly as planned but still worked out fine. Hayden came into the kitchen while we were making dinner and tried to show his new Big Brother book and the ultrasound picture. Grandma and Papa thought those were pictures from Hayden's ultrasound so it too a few minutes to process. We then Skyped with both Jess and Alys. We told Josh's parents and Kelsey by stopping in one night before dinner. We thought Nancy was going to be home sooner than she was so we had to awkwardly stall (Kelsey was beginning to catch on). While the three of them were eating dinner Hayden tried showing Grandpa his book but Grandpa didn't pay much attention to it. Nana caught on quite quickly and helped Grandpa clue in. Josh then sent Matthew a snap-chat of Hayden's book and the ultrasound. We waited to tell most of the rest of the family at our Thanksgiving celebrations by Hayden wearing this shirt:

Not everyone clued into the "baby" feather but once they did everyone was very excited. We sent this announcement out to my co-workers and friends.


Bump Pics:

 Week 11

Week 13



Week 39 Pregnancy Highlights

How Far Along: 39 Weeks

Size of Baby: a pumpkin is 38 weeks

Appointment Updates: Yesterday I had my 39 week appointment. I am progressing as I should be which I hope means the baby could come any day now. I am very proud of the amount of baby weight I have gained and hope it is just as easy to come off.  

Symptoms: I am blessed because I am feeling very well. Obviously having something the size of a pumpkin attached to your front mid section can be very uncomfortable but that is how it works. I look forward to easily being able to get off the couch soon instead of picking up momentum to fling myself off. A few problems I have encountered are indigestion (no more spicy food), swollen feet, and the lovely problem of having no control of my bladder.

Cravings: Food has been a hit or miss lately. Somedays I feel like I could eat all day and other days my stomach gets full so quickly. At this exact moment, I am loving chocolate cake!!!

Nursery Update: We can finally sit back and wait for the arrival of the baby because the nursery is complete! A man came in to add matching trim to the new wall as well as seal the carpet. Brand new window treatments were hung this weekend. Nancy helped me make a cornice for the window which turned out great! I sewed a bed skirt for the crib and made a "mural" for the wall. I wanted to make the mural into a tree but think it would look funny where I placed it. The baby's name will be on wooden, circle boards behind the nursery and that is finished, (well as much as it can be). Grandma Judie is working very hard at completing the baby's quilt which will make the room complete. I love the outcome of the nursery and can't wait for our little peanut to make the room perfect!

 Nursery before the wall went up

Thanks to Mom and Grandma for the crib!! The baby's name is going to go above the crib on wooden circles. (Notice the bathroom is still a work in progress.)

A little Chi Omega and Delta Upsilon love in the nursery!

Changing Area

The window valance Nancy and I made to add to the new blinds!

The baby's reading area

Circle mural to match the quilt

Crib skirt that I sewed

 

Looking Forward: Today was Kohler's first day of inservice and since the baby has not arrived yet I was in attendance. We have inservice Wednesday and day and our first day of school is next Tuesday. It has been very difficult getting me in the mindset of school as there are many "what-ifs".

Prayers: Please continue to pray for Josh and I as we anixously await the arrival of Baby TeBeest. I slight anxiety over the pain that might occur but know that God has his hand over me. I pray that the baby enters the world healthy, happy and knowing how truly loved her/she is!!

I am exhausted after a long day of work!

Week 36 Pregnancy Highlights

How Far Along: 36 Weeks

Size of Baby: a honeydew

Appointment Updates: Last night we had our 36 week appointment which means I go see the doctor now every week until the baby is born. I had the strep B test and have not heard anything yet so "no news is good news". I am barely dialated and over halfway effaced. I know it could still take a lot of time before the baby arrives but it is exciting to know that we are beginning the labor process!! Another guess the doctor gave us is that the baby will be about 7 lbs when it arrives.

Symptoms: To say that the baby is sitting low might be an understatement. I am now frequently the bathroom 3-4 times a night. I can definitely tell that after working/cleaning for a few hours I am completely exhausted and ready for a nap. On two occassions now, I have woken up around 4-5 and can not go back to bed which I guess must mean the baby is trying to get me ready for my lack of sleep.

Cravings: I am definitely not as picky with choosing meals as I was in the beginning. Sweets are definitely my favorite!!!

Nursery Update: The nursery and bathroom are both painted and waiting for the trim to be installed next week. Josh has put in new light fixtures in the nursery and bathroom. Next week Josh will hopefully get to put in his toilet and sink which means his man bathroom is back open. Josh and I put the crib up this past weekend and are slowly adding things to the nursery. Hopefully next week I will be able to upload lots of pictures!!!!

Weekly/Monthly News: As it has been almost a month since I last posted I feel like a lot has happened. Josh and I survived and had an amazing trip camping with Kat and Trent. Yes, I managed to sleep in a tent (on the aero bed) and even kayaked on Saturday. My family threw us a "Look Whoooo's About to Pop Shower" last weekend. Josh was a trooper and joined me for the shower. There were so many little touches that made the shower so wonderful. We are truly blessed with how many family and friends were in attendance and all of the baby items we received. I definitely feel like the baby could arrive any time and we would have what it needs, not saying it is organized though.

Just a few of the pictures from our shower:

Can you tell how much he loves the Bears outfits?

Thankful Josh's family traveled from WI to IL!

I am truly blessed!!

This past weekend we celebrated Josh's fraternity son's wedding in Appleton. Josh and I feel very honored to be able to be part of their big day!

I almost forgot..we finished our Labor, Birth, and Beyond classes this week! I think we can both say that the classes really did help us prepare for the many stages of labor. Josh was happy to hear the appropriate times to come to the hospital as he thinks I will want to go right away. Last night was Josh's 26th birthday and he spent it in Breastfeeding Class. Man, do I love him for being so supportive and comforting throughout my whole pregnancy. 

Looking forward: This is one of our first weekends all summer where we decided not to go anywhere. We have quite a large to-do list that we hope to tackle this weekend. The baby could come at any time so we want to be "prepared"!!!

Prayers: Please continue to pray for Josh and I as we wait with excitement and anxiety on the arrival of our little one. I need to keep reminding myself everything will come together just like it should!! I also ask for prayers to help ease my anxiety of possibly not starting the school year with my students.



Week 32 Pregnancy Highlights

How Far Along: 32 Weeks (today is 53 days away until the due date)

Size of Baby: a squash

Appointment Updates: I am now going to see the doctor every two weeks which seems to come very quickly. One thing the doctor was able to clarify for me was the burning/itching sensation by my right rib. The doctor explained that because my ribs have shifted the nerve is now being exposed. Starting on week 36 (aka Josh's birthday) I will start going once a week. I guess this is really not an appointment but we finally signed up for childbirth and breastfeeding classes. Childbirth classes will start on July 23rd for three weeks and breastfeeding is on the 7th of July (again Josh's birthday)!

Symptoms: I really can't complain, God is blessing Josh and I will something we have prayed about for a long time. The baby seems to be nice and cozy in my belly and is still finding room to move. Sleeping is getting a bit more tricky though. I think God is preparing me for nightly feeds because I seem to wake up around 3 and 4 and/or toss and turn all night. Last night, I even woke up at three thirty and was up until five thirty. As most of you know, I love sleep so not getting a "good nights" sleep might have been stressfull for me in the past but I am doing fine with no naps even.

Cravings: In one of my books I read that I would realize the things that baby might or might not like during the past few months. For instance, we got a buffalo chicken pizza from Pizza Ranch last night and I only ate a few slices because it was bothering my stomach. There are still many times when I make lunch or dinner and then don't even touch it.

Nursery Update: You can see that steps are being taken for the nursery. One of our family friends, Phil, has been hard at work mudding the walls so he can texturize soon. Once Phil is done my Dad will come up to help me do the painting for the bathroom and nursery. Next week the flooring guy is coming to complete the bathroom. I have bought most of my craft supplies so I need to start tackling some of those projects. Don't worry...I will definitely post pictures soon. 

Weekly News: Last week we spent the whole week in Little St. Germain with the TeBeests, Mentinks, and DeBruines. I thank God that the weather was only in the 80's/90's because it was much hotter in other parts of the midwest. The humidity was quite high so I stayed in the shade and would even take a nap in the air conditioned cabin. Josh loved his time on the lake skiing and wakeboarding. I did not miss skiing, as it is still hard for me, but I did miss tubing with the others. It is hard to imagine all of the "things" we will need to take Up North next year.

Thanks Jim for the lovely side profile.

Between Friday and Saturday we made the 8-9 hour drive to Champaign, IL for Jenni and Pat's wedding. Here the weather was in the high 90s and church had no air conditioning. It was definitely hard to breathe just stepping out of the car. The drive was a little long but the time spent with my childhood friends was priceless!!!

Most of us have known each other from almost 20 years!!

Looking forward: Today we have a co-workers wedding in Sheboygan which will be a great time to hang out with friends outside of work. Call me crazy but next weekend we are tent camping with Kat and Trent. Every summer we go camping with the Barnharts so I am putting on "my big-girl panties" and am going to make the trip. Spending time with the Barnharts will definitely outweigh sleeping on the ground or an air mattress. 

   32 week picture

Please continue to pray that these next few weeks go as smooth as possible and that Josh and I get to spend lots of quality time together before our little peanut arrives. 

Week 30 Pregnancy Highlights

How Far Along: 30 Weeks

Size of Baby: a cucumber (I find it odd that we went from a head of lettuce to a cucumber so who knows!)

Appointment Updates: The last appointment was my 28 week check-up which meant I had to drink the tasty, orange liquid to check my glucose levels. Everything came back fine with the glucose levels but my iron is low so now I have to take a supplement. My next appointment is a very quick check up on Friday.

Symptoms: I have found that during these last few weeks I have gotten a bit more uncomfortable. As Josh stated last time, the baby seems to really like my rib cage but specifically the right side. I find myself constantly massaging the ribs just for comfort. Sleeping throught the night has also been a bit difficult as I have been waking up at 4 a.m. I am hoping my sleeping pattern is better now that I am not anxious for New York anymore and that I have found a better time to take the iron pill. My feet are quite sore toward the end of the night which just means I probably need to rest more. :) I don't know if I would call this a symptom or pregnancy brain but for the second time now I have not just walked into the men's restroom but have actually used the facility and then realized I was in the wrong location. Unreal, huh?

Movement: The baby has days where it moves a little and other days when it is constantly moving. The plane and car ride home last night seemed to be when the baby moved the most which was of course, at nine to two in the morning. I am definitely not complaining because feeling the baby move was something I prayed for a long time about.

Cravings: Ice cream is still one of my favorite things to eat especially the Snicker bar treat. I am also still liking salty foods such as chips and salsa or Doritos.

Nursery Update- The dry wall is up in the nursery waiting to be spackled then texturized. Josh and I ordered flooring for the bathroom which should hopefully be installed when we get back from the Northwoods and a wedding in southern Illionis (July 8th). People were asking what we have left of the nursery so below is our  To-Do List.

To-do List:
Texturize nursery and bathroom
Paint nursery and bathroom
Pick out wall sconces
Sew valance for window
Decide/paint tree mural
Decide on crib skirt
Pray that Grandma Judie finishes the quilt
Move all the baby gifts into the nursery

Weekly News- We spent Sunday through Wednesday with my family in New York. All of us Chicagoians had a hard time not comparing New York City to Chicago. One of the best ways to seethe city was the double decker bus which took us around Central Park, Harlem, Times Square, Financial District, etc. The 9/11 Memorial was very moving with all the names etched in the stones. There were a handful of names that had a woman's name and then unborn child next to it which was very hard to see. Central Park is enormous yet so peaceful. On our last night we did see Newsical the Musical which surprisingly made me laugh. My poor feet definitely did hurt by the end of each day but I held out. We had a great trip but will it rush back to New York as we want to cross more locations of our travel list.

Looking forward: The start of "The Summer of Weddings" begins this weekend as Josh is a groomsman in his high school buddies wedding. The reception is at The Bull which makes me excited to go back to our reception location. Sunday morning we will leave to drive to the Northwoods for the TeBeest, Mentink, and DeBruin week of fun!! We will leave Friday to start our nine hour drive to  southern Illinois for one of my childhood friend's wedding. We are definitly looking forward to the next week but it will be nice to get a little break when we get home from the many vacations!

About 10 more weeks until we get to meet our little bundle of joy!!

Week 27

Pregnancy Highlights - Daddy edition!!!

How Far Along: 27 Weeks 

Size of Baby: a head of lettuce

Appointment Updates: A week from tonight we will get to see our little Beast again which means more pictures!!!

Symptoms: The belly is continuing to grow. Feet are swelling depending on what Ashley eats. The baby is moving higher and expanding the rib cage. She is also having more difficulty maintaining any physical activity without getting winded and tired much quicker than usual.

Movement: The baby is continuing to move a lot within the belly. There are now points where you can see the skin ripple. The baby likes to wake up and move a lot after Ashley has desserts and sweets, which is usually right before she wants to go to bed. I find it quite comical.

What I Miss: I miss being able to plan out meals. At this point, the only time Ashley can commit to food is immediately before she is hungry. That prevents us from thawing anything in the morning for the evening meal.

Cravings: The big sweet tooth is still there. I do not see this leaving before the baby is born, or even thereafter for that matter.

Weekly Highlights: We had a little TeBeest family vacation down on the Florida gulf, north of Panama City over an extended Memorial Day weekend. It was a great opportunity for me to recover after busy season, finally. It allowed us to get a good base tan for the summer as well. I convinced Ashley to wear a bikini, and she was not the only pregnant woman to do so, which helped her feel more comfortable. My mother threw a shower for Ashley on the following Saturday. A lot of the college ladies Ashley has not seen since the wedding were able to attend. She had a wonderful time and our house now has piles of baby items spread out in the corners of various rooms.

Nursery Updates: I have made good use of my only free Saturdays the past couple weeks until the baby is born. The weekend before Florida I was able to rough in the wall. This past weekend during the shower. The door frame got plumbed in and I started hanging drywall with Chumley and my in-laws. During the weeks in between, I wired the rear speakers for the surround sound, finally, and finished all the electrical issues that I will be tackling with this project. I added a 20 amp circuit to handle the entertainment center, and included the new outlet in the nursery, and connected the NW outlet to this circuit as well since it was not grounded. I now have a total of 12 grounded outlets in the house. (When we bought it there were 3). I have some support boards to put in since I do not like how the drywall is attached, and then I can tape, mud, and sand, and get it textured. Then on to the flooring and trim work. Hopefully I can stay motivated and Ashley doesn't want me to spend time with her on the couch cause then things will not be ready without additional stress.

Looking forward: We now do not have a free weekend until August 11. Having a busy summer is an understatement at this point. I have begun telling people that I will not have a relaxing extended time frame for the next 25 years or so. Ashley doesn't have anything planned for the summer, so she is hoping to find something regular to keep her busy. We hope everyone reading this can enjoy their summer.

Prayers: We were able to get Ashley's FMLA leave figured out at a very minimal cost to us outside of the lost salary, which will be a tremendous blessing to her and our daycare planning. Pray for the continued growth and health of the baby. Kohler is having lots of changes at this point, so pray that Ashley will remain calm and realized that God has everything under control. I am struggling with whether I should look for jobs closer to home at this point. Deloitte is great, is a very respected name, and has so many great perks but its also the only thing I know at this point. It's also in MKE and can be extremely demanding at times. Pray for God to reveal where he wants me in the future.