21 Week Update

Happy Halloween week! I hope you've all indulged in entirely too many sweets and had your fair share of pumpkin activities! This evening, we'll be heading to my parents house to finish our Halloween costumes and watch some kid-friendly scary movies. And I'm sure Taylor will be more than happy to help me polish off the rest of the Sour Patch Kids in the candy jar.

Size: A banana

Gender: Boy!

Maternity Clothes: Living in tank tops and cardigan sweaters lately. Trying to stretch my pre-baby sweaters over the belly just looks ridiculous, so it's probably best to avoid that section of my closet for the rest of winter.

Sleep: Still not great but I'm learning to live with what I can get. I live for naps on the weekends.

Best Moment of the Week(s): All of the Halloween festivities! We've had our fair share of treats and pumpkin painting to put us in the holiday spirit!

Miss Anything: A friend of ours brought us a case of Yuengling which I haven't had in forever. I'm so sad that I have to wait 5 more months to have one!!

Movement: His movements are growing stronger and more frequent by the day. Our little man is definitely active!

Cravings: Halloween candy - sugary, chocolaty, you name it I'll eat it! Also craving apple juice which means I've had to hone in on Tay's juice box stash on more than one occasion.

Sickness: Just a stuffy nose which I'm sure is allergy related. Our weather has been crazy lately!

Looking Forward To: Trick or treating with my little lady and her cousins this weekend. She is so excited and I can't wait to experience every single moment with her! I also can't wait to share their costumes on the blog next week!

And what would a Halloween week update be without a glimpse of our costumes? You'll have to hold out until next week to see Taylor's real costume, but she did get to wear her Minnie Mouse outfit to her daycare party earlier this week and let me tell you she was SO excited.

And the babe and I went as the Pilsbury Doughboy because hello! anything to allow me to wear sweats to work. #woohoo

Pumpkin Patching

Well, it wouldn't be fall without a trip to the pumpkin patch. This year, we chose Pete's Pumpkin Patch just outside of Rolla, Missouri, a place close to my hometown so that my parents, sister, nieces & nephew could go with us. And you guys, we had the BEST time! This place had so many activities, not just your typical hay wagon and box full of corn. Even my parents got in on the action chasing the kids around and posing for silly pictures. You know what they say, you're only as old as you feel!

First, we visited the animals where Taylor sang to the pigs, refused to hold the bunny, and spoke (mostly gibberish) to the mini horse. I'm not sure why but she is always drawn to the pigs and scared of the horses. Perhaps we need to talk Daddy into a pet pig?!

Next up, a few trips down the slide (for everyone but the pregnant lady) followed by lots of running around and climbing through tunnels and over stacks of hay bales. Taylor is totally an outdoor girl so this was right up her alley. Her favorite activity was climbing halfway through the tunnels (just to the point where we couldn't reach her) and then sitting. Super fun for her but not so much for the other kids who wanted to go all the way through to the other side.

On our way to the train, Taylor spotted a wooden truck sitting in the middle of the field and she instantly fell in love. She spent a solid 30 minutes rotating from the driver's seat to the flatbed, making one of us get in to play with her with every rotation. And that picture of her and my mom just cracks me up because they were obviously having a very serious conversation.

Next, we rode the train, played on the tire swings, and got in a few games of tic-tac-toe. Eventually, the girls spotted the bounce house and it was all down hill from there. Kids go absolutely bananas for inflatable bounce houses. While the little ones bounced away, the older girls decided to tackle the rock climbing wall. Even Uncle Jake got in on the action challenging Natalie to a race, but unfortunately for him she weighs next to nothing and is exceptionally strong. The 6' giant lost to a 10 year old girl which means she has bragging rights forever.

After finishing all of the other activities, we jumped on the hay wagon and headed out to the patch to pick some pumpkins. The little girls were hilarious trying to pick up the pumpkins on their own but quickly learned that two is better than one and made it a joint effort. I just love these little ladies and their goofy personalities!

The kids were exhausted and nap time was long overdue, so we paid for our pumpkins, grabbed a few bags of kettle corn, and hit the road. It's safe to say that our pumpkin patch trip was definitely a success! And with the wide variety of the activities for all of the kids to enjoy, I'm sure we'll be visiting Pete's again next year.

20 Week Update

20 weeks already, can you believe it? I don't know if it's because our schedule has been jam-packed since the moment we found out or because I spend the majority of my time trying to keep up with a toddler, but this pregnancy is absolutely flying by! With a flurry of holidays on the horizon, I'm sure the weeks will continue to fly by and it'll be baby day before we know it! Guess we better start making some actual progress on things like the nursery, a name, and pulling things out of storage. We're officially on the downhill slope and it feels oh so good!

Size: A mango (but feels more like a bowling ball)

Gender: Boy! Can't wait to see our little guy in action this Friday at our 20 week ultrasound. I've also been doing more than my fair share of online shopping lately, scooping up all kinds of things for our little one!

Maternity Clothes: I've been taking full advantage of the end of fall sales and beefing up my winter wardrobe with both maternity and non-maternity pieces. Let me just say that leggings, scarves, and cardigans are a pregnant lady's dream! It's so nice to finally feel comfortable in my clothes again!

Sleep: Sleep had been better until these crazy 80 temps returned (is it really mid-October?!) as did night time hot flashes. Add in a stuffy nose, multiple trips to the bathroom, and constant turning from side to side and you get a night full of mini naps.

Best Moment of the Week(s): Hitting the halfway point and our 20 week ultrasound at the end of the week. We've decided to take big sis along so she can see her bwov-ver for herself!

Miss Anything: I literally stood in the wine section and drooled over a bottle of Muscato yesterday. And I'm salivating now just thinking about it...

Movement: Homeboy is so much lower than I ever remember Taylor being which means that it constantly feels like he's river dancing on my bladder. I love every single movement though and cannot wait for Jake and Taylor to be able to feel soon!

Cravings: Jake and I made a trip to Party City after a lunch date last week to pick up Taylor's Halloween costume (hint: she and her twin cousins are dressing up as a threesome this year) and on my way back to work I devoured a jumbo Laffy Taffy like I was 5 years old. But honestly, it was so freaking good. I am in candy heaven lately.

Sickness: Other than a stuffy/runny nose (which I'm blaming on allergies), things are good. I've felt so much better over the last week, maybe it's the weather or maybe I'm finally hitting that second trimester stride.

Looking Forward To: Seeing little man on Friday and having family photos taken on Saturday. Fingers crossed that the weather stays nice so we can get some great images. Can't wait to share our updated family photos soon!

Taylor's 2nd Birthday

After spending entirely too much time and money on Taylor's first birthday party (go big or go home, right?), I decided that this year was going to be less about everyone else and more about what she wanted. And right now, there are two things that Taylor absolutely loves: Mickey Mouse and playing outside. So when I found out that Disney on Ice would be in St. Louis the weekend of her birthday, I couldn't grab tickets fast enough. We invited my mom, sister, nieces, and nephew along for the ride and ended up making an entire day of it. And let me tell you, those two hours of nonstop entertainment made her happier than any party I could've ever thrown her. She was in heaven!

When the show began, she stared in complete disbelief at what was happening before her. Our seats were just five rows from the ice so I'm sure the music, lights, and constant movement were a lot for her to take in, but she sat completely still nearly the entire first half with her eyes glued on the characters.

When the tot wasn't glued to the action, she was busy snacking, of course. She made her way up and down the aisle helping herself to everyone's goodies but spent most of the time devouring Natalie's popcorn. This girl definitely lives life according to her stomach.

After the show, we made sure to stop at one of those over-priced kiosks and grab a stuffed Mickey Mouse for the birthday girl which she fell in love with instantly (and still sleeps with every night). Next, we were our way to the zoo only to find that literally everyone in a five county radius had also decided to go the zoo that day. So, we called a spade a spade and decided to head to the mall instead. The adults shopped, the kids ran wild at the play place, and we made approximately 15 trips to the bathroom. When it was time to head home, Taylor snuggled up in her car seat with Mickey and was out before we even hit the interstate.

The next day was Taylor's actual birthday which meant snuggles and cartoons in bed followed by birthday waffles! Tay's reaction when we lit the candles was absolutely priceless, but she quickly blew them out once she spotted the whipped cream. Before I could even remove the second candle, she was shoveling handfuls of it in her mouth!

Later that afternoon, we celebrated with a small get together at the park with close friends and family. While I had no intention of going to the same extremes I did last year, I couldn't bear the thought of her not having some sort of celebration on her actual birthday. So we hung a few decorations at one of the park pavilions, ordered some pizzas for lunch, and let the kids run wild at the playground for a few hours. She wasn't a huge fan of opening presents (and mostly just sat on the table eating her blue sucker while I opened everything), but her attitude quickly changed when she spotted two new pairs of play shoes and a Minnie Mouse outfit of her very own.

Overall, this girl had a wonderful 2nd birthday. Thank you to everyone for joining in the festivities, showering Taylor with gifts, and reminding us just how loved this little lady is. We are so very fortunate to call her ours! 

18 & 19 Week Update

Size: A tomato (which is fitting because I have eaten my weight in red sauce lately)

Gender: It's a BOY! Time to get rid of all of those totes full of beautiful hair bows and adorable girl clothes and start shopping!

Maternity Clothes: With the weather cooling off, it's strictly leggings and maternity pants from here on out. I still can't wrap my head around how big this belly is already!

Sleep: Sleep is sporadic these days, some nights it's great and others it's an all night struggle. I'm pretty sure it will be this way for the next 5 long months. Long story short, I just never get enough.

Best Moment of the Week(s): Our gender reveal was definitely the highlight of week 18, and cleaning out the nursery was a huge accomplishment this week. Clearing out the soon-to-be-nursery was an overwhelming task since it was basically just a catch all for everything in our house that didn't really belong in another room (think guest room/office/sewing room combined), but I'm so glad the space is finally empty so we can start focusing on decor!

Miss Anything: We tailgated with friends this weekend in honor of Mizzou's homecoming and watching everyone drink tasty beverages was definitely a bummer. I'm this close to buying a case of pumpkin beer and stashing it away until spring.

Movement: This little guy has become very active lately! It's still too early to feel movement from the outside, but I know that it won't be long because his kicks are getting stronger by the day.

Cravings: My sweet tooth is finally back in action. And just in time for Halloween candy...

Sickness: We all managed to survive our first round of sickness of the season, and I'm fairly certain it won't be our last. Other than my germ-induced illness, I've felt pretty good lately.

Looking Forward To: Our 20 week ultrasound next week. I can't wait to see our little guy on the big screen! Debating taking Taylor to the appointment so she can see the baby and maybe understand a little more about what's really going on. Any thoughts/suggestions on that topic?

And last week's photo because I just couldn't get my life together enough to get it posted until now. We all battled a 24 hour stomach bug and I had an intense week at work which left me too exhausted at night to barely cook dinner let alone blog. Life gave me a swift kick in the ass last week, so I'm really glad to see it go. Ah, motherhood.

Gender Reveal

Time to start shopping for grays and blues, because Baby Eldredge is a BOY! That's right, we'll be leveling out the playing fields in the Eldredge household come March. Jake is over the moon excited (even though Taylor is as tomboy as they come), and I'm still trying to wrap my head around the whole thing. I was absolutely certain that this little babe was another girl, but I was also certain that Taylor was going to be a boy so apparently I'm 0-2.

Regardless of our predictions, we just hope our little guy is happy and healthy. We can't wait to see him up close at our 20 week ultrasound at the end of this month. Until then, we'll be teaching Taylor how to say "brother" rather than "seester" and getting to work on the nursery!

We hope you enjoyed the reveal as much as we did! There were definitely a lot of emotions (and wagers) swirling around the room. A special thanks to Jake's mom for being the sole keeper of the baby's gender and putting together the sweetest (yet deceptive) package for us to open. And a big thank you to my mom and dad for hosting a little get together at their house so that we could all be together for the big reveal. This baby is already so loved, and we can't wait to welcome him into our amazing family in just 5 short months!

17 Week Update

Size: A turnip

Gender: Our gender reveal package is sitting on the kitchen island and taunts me every time I walk by it. Talk about torture - the anticipation is killing me! Thankfully, the wait is almost over, because we'll be unwrapping that bad boy in less than 48 hours!

Maternity Clothes: I finally got around to digging my tote of maternity clothes out of storage, and I forgot how much stuff I actually purchased last time! And I took full advantage of my built in babysitters at the mall this weekend and snuck off to H&M where I bought a few tops and a pair of maternity skinny jeans. The process of putting on maternity skinny jeans is quite interesting, but once they're on they're actually pretty comfortable! I'm looking forward to wearing something other than leggings on the weekends!

Sleep: Jake bought me a Snoogle for my birthday and sleep has been mostly better ever since. Some nights I get tangled up in the thing and end up throwing it on the floor, but other nights I sleep like a dream on it. I still have to get up for potty breaks at least 3 times a night but I find myself falling back to sleep much quicker when I have something to snuggle up to. And can we talk about these crazy pregnancy dreams? It's like every single person from my childhood has made a guest appearance lately in a cave or space ship or somewhere equally random.

Best Moment This Week: Celebrating birthdays - I turned 31 and big sister turned 2! We had such a great weekend, and I can't wait to share details with you soon!

Miss Anything: I feel like "sleep" is going to be the answer from here on out. I also really miss turkey sandwiches. And pumpkin beer. And the majority of my wardrobe.

Movement: I felt the first flutters of movement this past weekend - and on Taylor's birthday to boot! The three of us were laying in bed watching cartoons when out of nowhere I felt a burst of flutters in my belly. I was over the moon happy and Jake was slightly jealous. Don't worry honey, those giant kicks and elbow jabs will be here before we know it!

Cravings: Just everything, all the time. Last night's snack consisted of leftover cookies from Taylor's daycare party and a giant dill pickle, and I'm pretty sure I'll need to hook myself up to an IV of OJ before the end of this pregnancy. I just can't get enough!

Sickness: Occasional heartburn but that's nothing new. Feeling pretty good in this department!

Looking Forward To: Finding out the gender this weekend. We were excited with Taylor, but we are literally busting at the seams, dying to know with baby no. 2! Also looking forward to some pumpkin patching with the tot and her cousins this weekend. I absolutely love watching them in action, and I can't wait until there's a 6th to add to the mix soon!