month 7 {october}

How Far Along: 32 weeks

Size: A Florida pomelo . . . whatever that is! Average size at this time is about 18 inches long and 4 pounds, but she's likely bigger than that. At an ultrasound about a month ago, she was already measuring 5 days ahead. We'll see how her size compares with her sister's!

Gender: Girl 🎀

Name: We finally solidified her name!!!!! Her name will be Holly B :) the B is after her Granny B (Barbara, Russ's mom). Everyone I asked about middle name suggestions would ask about family names, and I'd always tell them the same two things -- I'm not naming my kid something just because it's in my family line, and I'm not passing on a name I don't like. If we use a family name, it will be because it means something special to us and we like how it sounds. So the weekend we decided on "B," Granny B came to take care of Ada so that Russ and I could go on a babymoon. We got to spend some time with her before we left, and in that time, she and I had a long, nice conversation, and we got to see her play with Ada so willingly. I've always thought I hit the jackpot when it comes to mother-in-laws, but these two things reminded me just how much I love and admire her. In my mind, we're having 4 kids -- two boys and two girls, which would mean this is our last girl (obviously idk that, but it could be true!). And I told Russ, "If we can only name a girl after one person, I want it to be your mom." He was obviously on board :) So it was decided, and I'm really happy with our decision :)

Movement: This little lady is getting so big!! She pokes and prods me everywhere, and it's so cute when I can feel a little foot or elbow specifically poking me or moving along my belly. I think she's started to have hiccups, but I'm not positive. She's so fun, but sometimes I'm like CALM DOWN because she still moves soooo much (still worried about her future sleep habits 😂😂)

Sleep: I'm definitely waking up a lot. More than having to pee a lot, the issues are switching sides (where I have to carry my huge belly, so I have to wake up to roll over) and round ligament pain. That hip pain is the worst!!! I'm almost always just happy to wake up so I can get my legs moving again!

Weight Gain: Did better this month, possibly because in the week before I weighed myself, I really started focusing on eating better. Up 36.4 total, but only 2.8 pounds from last month! 🙌

Symptoms: Charley horses have come with a vengeance! Those are another thing that frequently wake me up 😩 I think I'm also having Braxton Hicks contractions, but I really don't know. Round ligament pain, like I mentioned above. Difficulty breathing (just when sitting). General discomfort -- there's no comfy position because I always feel like I can't breathe or something else is uncomfortable. And I think I'm getting to that awful stage when there's such a delicate balance to how much I can eat, because I alternate between starving and full so quickly.

Diabetes: My last a1c was the highest I've had during this pregnancy (7.3) because I went off auto mode for like a week. This new pump/sensor thing I have is GREAT when it works, but when it doesn't, it's so frustrating! But all my manual settings weren't adjusted for this stage of pregnancy, and I didn't bother to change them, so it definitely affected my blood sugars. During the week I started to eat better (and was in auto mode), my blood sugars were AMAZING, so I just need to keep that all up!

Cravings/Aversions: Possibly banana peppers? I tried them on a sandwich for the first time (I usually only have them on J Dawgs) and loved them! So I ate them every day for a few days, but it's been a couple weeks since then. Other than that, nothing really. Still just love all food 😂

Diet/Exercise: Still no exercise, but like I mentioned, I started making some diet changes. I've cut out snacking for the most part, and I've tried to limit flour and sugar. I'm not ready to eliminate them, but I can definitely do with less. I've also been trading carbs for more carb-free options like meat and veggies whenever I can. When I eat out, I try to choose a healthier option. I've had some definite hiccups in this new way of eating (hello Halloween and babymoon!), but overall I'm definitely making healthier choices.

Missing Most: Being comfortable. Being able to move with ease. Sleeping on my stomach and back. But it's all worth it :)

Nursery: No changes yet.

Daddy: Likes to bump and poke "Holly," but really he's just bumping and poking me 🙄

Ada: Ada has very recently learned to say her full name (and now introduces herself to everyone with her full name 😂), so once we picked out Holly's middle name, I started working on teaching her to say Holly's full name, too. Everything sounds even cuter when Ada says it 😍 She's always so sweet when talking about her sister, and likes to tell everyone about Baby Holly :)

Highlights & Memories: 

• There's this swimsuit company (Kortni Jeane) that always gives away a bunch of free swimsuit pieces during October (Halloween is her favorite holiday). The way to get the free pieces is to go to the random places she puts in her IG stories at specific times, and wear a KJ top and a KJ bottom. Welp, with this huge belly, I don't quite fit into my KJ top and bottom just right anymore, but I wanted the free suits! So I made it to two different trick-or-treats and had to go completely belly-out 😂 (usually the top and bottom touch and completely cover my torso). It was worth it though! I got a new top for me and a bottom for Ada, and they match! So I'll be twinning with my girl next summer . . . now to get a one-piece in the same fabric for Holly so she can match us, too! 😍
• Halloween just happened, and that was fun! Initially I was considering pregnant-focused costumes, like Mike Wizowski (Monster's Inc.), but ultimately went with the Fairy Godmother, which turned out to be a great option because the costume still accommodated my big belly, but I was able to be super comfortable, too. Our family costumes looked so cute together!

• We went on our Babymoon! And it was great. We did a two-day getaway to the Zermatt hotel in Midway, Utah, and it was so nice to have some time with just the two of us. We did fun things, we ate good food, and we had lots of good conversation. We don't get nearly enough time together just the two of us these days, so it was really good to be together :)

Can’t Wait For: I'm definitely a list-kinda person, so I'm excited to start crossing a few more things off the list! We'll do maternity pics soon, and now that Holly has a middle name, I can also move forward on getting her a "first Christmas" ornament. Also getting excited for Thanksgiving (though not sure how I'll fit much food as I'll be 3 weeks out from Baby at that time!)! Also, can we just mention how CLOSE WE ARE TO BABY!? 6.5 weeks to go!