As Of Late

We've been walking further on our usual trail, discovering new areas of the forest. That is, when it's not hailing or down pouring. A certain dog keeps falling into the river on every walk which gives her mama and dad a good laugh. 

The other dog has been super, duper cuddly and snuggly lately. 

I turned another year older last week! I'm not too excited to be on the other side of my twenties... I AM excited for all of the exciting things happening this year. My last birthday, if you recall, was the birthday of snow.  I'm officially calling this year the birthday of food. On Tuesday my best bud, E, took me out to lunch. On Wednesday I convinced D to get Panda Express, while in Portland, for lunch. And on Thursday I received a large package full of this: 

Four of my favorite dishes from my FAVORITE Chinese restaurant in my hometown. It's tradition that us kids get to pick where we want to go for our birthday dinner. For over 20 years I've picked the same restaurant. A few months ago I jokingly asked my dad to ship me some. I never guessed that he actually would! 

 As you can see it was terrible. Absolutely terrible. 

Sweet Potato Gets Sweeter

15 Weeks! Like our messy bathroom?

Size of Baby: 10.2 cm- about the size of a navel orange.
Total Weight Gain: Turns out my scale is off by about 5-6 pounds. So, I'm guesstimating I'm up 4lbs total.
Continuing Symptoms: Hip discomfort at night time, acne and ligament pain- sneezing is now painful! Back soreness by the end of the day, and I'm still producing a lot of spit.
New Symptoms: Sinus problems/ headaches, extremely dry skin on my legs, and I constantly have chapped lips. My gag reflex has become more sensitive. Eating salads and brushing my teeth seem to set it off the most.
Physical Changes: As you can see I'm starting to show! A couple shirts that I sleep in are very, very tight. Although I'm still in that awkward stage where I just look as if I ate a huge burrito. I've com-plete-ly grown out of my old bras and it's looking like another new (and bigger) sports bra is in my future.
Maternity Clothes: Still not big enough yet. I have a pair of jeans that might make it one more week, and a pair of leggings that have an elastic band that's waaaay too tight.
Sleep: Experienced women promised more energy in the second trimester and they did not disappoint. I have days where I can go, go, go... but once I'm tired I completely shut down. Sleep has improved this past week except it's hard to get comfortable when I'm having hip pain. Apparently, D can ask me questions in my sleep and I'll respond but won't be able to remember the next day. He also says I'm extremely hostile when he tries to get me to bed after I fall asleep on the couch.
What I'm Eating: Same old, same old. I've been loving Cara Cara oranges and pasta with red sauce and fresh garlic. I also can't get enough applesauce, broccoli, cantaloupe, and spaghetti squash. Some days it's hard for me to stay full for longer periods of time.
Cravings: Starbursts and Chinese food. I'm really missing my favorite Chinese restaurant back in my hometown but I'll settle for Panda Express. Some day, while in Portland, I'll convince D to get me some.
Special Pregnancy Moments: A couple weeks ago I woke up with a little tummy that didn't go away, and I swear I felt it grow during the night! I loved hearing that all my lab work was normal and on track. We also got to hear the baby's heartbeat! (150-155 bpm!) D and I often play the video that he recorded of the heartbeat and we always start dancing to it since it sounds like there's a disco party going on in my uterus. We received a large package of baby clothes from my grandma which was really sweet and exciting. Three more weeks until we get to see the baby again and, hopefully, find out the baby's gender!

*** The old font was getting harder for me to read. (yikes!) This blog revamp has been long overdue.

Life, Lately

D heads back to work next week after being off for a month from his surgery. As much as I love having my own space, time and routine I actually survived him being home a lot better than I expected.  It was great that he was home during the weeks that I just had no energy. The times he refilled my water bottle, made me a pb & j, took the night/ early morning shift with the dogs and attempted to do the dishes were greatly appreciated. Of course there were some moments that I was SO wishing the month would go by faster.

Probably the best part this past month was the ability to explore our area more on a moment's notice. One of the  best perks of living in a small, coastal community is the unlimited access we have to the hundreds of beaches. One day we played tourist and drove south down the coastline to Manzanita and discovered another adorable town with some great beaches. I truly cannot wait to take our little one on walks to the beach!