30 Weeks - Let the countdown begin!

How Far Along: 30 weeks! Oh yes, I can count the remaining weeks on my hands. 

How I'm Feeling: I'm somewhere between "oh I'm not that big" and "holy shit she has to practically double in weight!"

I physically feel great for being 30 weeks pregnant. Very minimal discomfort and I am only reminded that I'm pregnant when I'm trying to get out of the car or off of the couch. Or when she karate kicks my boobs when I'm sitting. Now that she has turned head down I feel a lot of little kicks up top and I think she moves her elbows back-and-forth across my lower abdomen. I always feel hiccups in my lower left side which at the last ultrasound was right where her head was.

A lot of the comments on my weekly update were women with an entire list of complaints..heartburn, can't sleep, swollen, stretch marks, nauseous, all over pains, headaches..the list continues. I am feeling very fortunate to be able to enjoy my pregnancy. I know as the weeks progress I'll become increasingly uncomfortable but for now I feel pretty damn good!

Mentally, I'm so in love with her! I can only imagine how that love will grow once she's here. I feel like I'm understanding where moms get their "my child is the cutest/best/most beautiful child ever" complex. From just the tiny glimpses I got from her last ultrasound I'm obsessed with her! I told Dylan, "I think she really is cute..and I'm not just saying that because she's ours"..and then I started wondering if thats what every mom thinks! It begins...

Weight Gain/Loss: I'll find out tomorrow at my doctor's appointment! 

Cravings: Cheesecake & Salt and Vinegar chips. No, not together. Ha.

Gender: Girl ...I'm having unsolicited fears that she is really a boy and everyone was wrong in the beginning. It's the crazy talking..

What I Miss: Still not missing much..I had a moment yesterday that called for a jumbo delish margarita! The good kind..not too green..not too mixy..perfect slush factor. Oh yeah..could have gone for one of those! Have to wait a while longer..

What I'm Looking Forward To: I'm very excited because the previously mentioned stressful moment actually ended in getting an actual plan for these next few weeks! I was able to pinpoint when I'll move back to NC, when Dylan will be home (don't screw this up USMC!), and when to schedule with my doctor up there. It was a huge relief to finally finally have some answers.

My mom and I are going up to my house in NC next week for Christmas..I'm excited to see Marchello & spend some time in the nursery. There isn't really much I can do at this point but just getting some of Layla's things up there will feel good. It will feel like a mini vacation.

I ordered our cloth diaper stash...shipping takes FOREVER but I'm relieved to know they are on their way and I'm looking forward to that little venture. It's still shocking to me that I'm excited to cloth diaper..I literally said I would never, ever cloth diaper and now I'm so happy that we are.

Weekly Wisdom: I've mentioned starting your registry early before, but I'm coming back to say it again because I am still obsessing over ours. I started the registry in the first trimester (kept it private for the time being) and up until today I am still adding/deleting/altering ours. I feel like it's finally "complete" but I can't imagine how stressed I would feel if I had waited till late in the game to start it! Give yourself the time to research and look into what you think would benefit your family the most. There have been plenty of items that I thought were "MUST HAVES" when I first became pregnant and now that time is drawing closer, I've become more realistic as to what we can really get the most use from (example: delete the ruffled diaper covers, add more burp cloths). I think the longer you're in the "baby waiting game" and the more blogs that you read from new moms you discover new praise and criticism of certain products.

We've also been very fortunate to have some of our registered items handed down to us from family friends. It's been great because it allows me to delete those items from the registry in hopes that other items can be fulfilled!