Friday 5: January 9, 2015

1. Did you see Lilly Pulitzer is coming to Target? Oh, be still my heart! The line debuts April 19, right before Hudson's due date. I think some cute new clothes might be the perfect post-delivery pick me up.

2. We R Memory Keepers announced their Fuse tool this week, which lets you "weld" pockets into plastic page protectors or combine pockets for a flip book or water fall effect.

3. I loved this brief post from LifeYourWay.net. (Yes, pun intended!)

4. I'm saving up for this darling "cat lady" bundle from Studio Calico's new SevenPaper line.,

5. I'm currently addicted to Zulily.com. I wish I had caught onto this website years ago, but I always thought it was just baby stuff! Now that I'm having a baby, I came back, and I found that there is SO much more!

New Year's Resolutions for 2015

We might be a week into the new year, but I still wanted to share my resolutions for 2015. I'm keeping it short and simple this year. I just don't think I have the time or energy to do anything major this year. So instead, I chose a few projects to work on and a few habits I'd like to form. Ideally, the projects will be finished before I start my maternity leave in mid-April, and the habits will be well-established before Hudson arrives a few days later.

1. Daily Bible Reading

I'm using the YouVersion app to help me keep this goal. I've chosen a few reading plans so that I spend about 20-30 each day reading Scriptures and devotionals. I'm really enjoying the balance between having a plan and having some variety. Currently, I'm reading an Overflow devotional from Hillsong United, a study on radical prayer, a set of 100 essential Bible passages, and a one year reading plan that pulls from several difference Once-A-Day Bibles.

2. Pray more.

With a baby on the way and my life about to change forever, I need to get into a consistent pattern of prayer. I pray at various times throughout the day, but I would like to get to the point where I consistently pray at the same times every day.

3. Declutter

Every closet in our house is full of stuff. I want to empty out at least one of them so Hudson has room for all his stuff. The closet in his room has held our Christmas decorations since we moved in. My plan is to clean out the office closet, move the Christmas decorations in there, and have Hudson's closet ready for all his clothes and toys long before we need it.

4. Finish A Clash of Kings.

I have been working on this book for nearly a year. I just want to finish it!

5. Be caught up on my Project Life album.

I'll be honest. I did not even one complete layout in 2014, so I'm calling 2014 a wash and starting fresh with 2015.

What I'm Cherishing Right Now

Yesterday morning, I woke up at 12:15 p.m. because Trevor needed to shower in the master bathroom. I had slept for nearly twelve hours with just one potty break in the middle of that time. That sort of sleep has been rare since I hit the second trimester. Sleeping like that was simply glorious.

I won't be able to do this when Hudson arrives.

Last night, I went to Publix by myself, without a list, and just wandered the store, picking up whatever looked yummy and figuring out what we would eat for the week as I went. I utterly failed at making a plan as I went, and I ended up having to make another trip to the store again tonight.

I won't be able to do this when Hudson arrives.

Tonight, I went to Babies R Us to pick up gifts for a couple baby showers I'll be attending in the next few weeks (yes, all of us are having babies at once, it seems). I spent 45 minutes wandering the store, and unsatisfied with what was left on my friend's registry, I went to Carter's to pick up a clearance outfit to round out her gift. While I was there, I noticed they had BOGO 50% off shoes next door at Shoe Carnival, so I popped in there for a good hour and walked out with three new pairs of flats for work.

I won't be able to do this when Hudson arrives.

When I got home from shopping, I played Candy Crush on my phone for awhile while Crookshanks snuggled on my lap. I'm cherishing these nights when he can jump on and off my lap whenever he pleases, with no baby crying for my attention or already occupying my lap.

I won't be able to do this when Hudson arrives.

Though we planned this pregnancy and very much wanted this child, I am so cherishing these last few months of freedom before we meet him. I'm doing my best not to wish away this time, to truly enjoy feeling his little wiggles at night. This stage won't last long - I've really only been able to feel him moving for a few weeks. Once he joins the outside world, I'll have him home with me for eighteen years. While I can't wait to see his face or hold him, each time I feel him kick, I know...

I won't be able to do this once Hudson arrives.

24 Weeks!

As of New Year's Eve, Hudson is viable! Medical personnel can save him if he would be born after this point. It certainly wouldn't be easy or ideal, but I take a lot of comfort in knowing we have hope now. His lungs will be developed enough for him to breath on his own when he reaches 27 weeks. That will be January 21. I will be so excited when we reach that milestone.

Hudson is now over a foot long and weighs more than a pound. He's becoming more and more active each day. He is still most active overnight, so unless I'm waking up at night, I don't feel him that much. I was able to feel him really stretch out a couple days ago - a few little kicks along my right side and some little flutters just above and far below my belly button. I can only imagine that he was lying in a transverse position and stretched out his arms and legs as far as they could go. It was pretty amazing to feel him moving in so many spots at once. I can't imagine how those expecting twins must feel.

I am still feeling really well. I did catch a cold while I was in North Dakota this past week, though. It was pretty miserable until I found out I could take Robitussin that doesn't contain alcohol. It made a huge difference in my comfort level. I am still coughing a lot, but I am feeling loads better now that I am home in my own bed. 

Our next checkup is Wednesday. We will actually be at 25 weeks at that point, but my schedule and the midwives' schedules didn't match up during the holidays. This will be a fairly brief appointment, but our 28 week appointment will be fairly lengthy. I'll have the glucose challenge for gestational diabetes, complete my FMLA paperwork with the midwife, have an ultrasound to check my placenta (the anatomy scan showed a partial placenta previa), and discuss our birth plan. It will be over an hour, maybe longer. I'll probably take a personal day that day so Trevor and I can work on the nursery if I'm feeling up to it after the long appointment (and gross glucose drink).

Today, Trevor and I are taking care of about a million little things before I start school again on Monday. I'm co-hosting a baby shower next Sunday for a friend who recently moved into our neighborhood, so I'm working on decorations between loads of laundry, and Trevor is getting some painting done in the nursery so I can start organizing it in the evenings after school.

Here's to a great first full week of 2015!