30 weeks.

Happy 30 weeks to me and baby Swenson! We're 75% done, with only 10 more weeks to go. I feel like I've reached a pregnancy milestone. We're in the 30's now!

This week I've had no desire to nest. Not because I'm tired or uncomfortable, but because cleaning and organizing doesn't sound fun to me at all. I'm waiting to wash baby clothes and put the nursery together when I'm about 35 or 36 weeks along, so we'll have everything by then. That's what I'm excited for. :)

I. cannot. stop. eating. sugar. It's insane. That whole no-sugar-until-Fall thing flew out the window that night. This baby cannot get enough. Cookies, cake, brownies, candy, and root beer! My parents took us out to Brick Oven the other night, and I probably drank about 3 tall glasses of root beer (again).

I don't feel very big for being 30 weeks, but I am definitely still getting bigger by the day. And this baby loves to kick and squirm and roll over all the time. I think it knows mine and Zac's voices, because whenever either of us talk, it kicks. And when we push on my belly, it kicks us back. We like that game. :) 

I'm trying to not buy any baby things now until after my baby showers. I'm focusing more on what I need want, like maternity leggings that I can wear after I have the baby, and bras (I haven't had to buy one yet... I don't know whether to be happy or sad about that... also, does anyone know how much bigger I'd want to buy?). And in the next couple of weeks, I'll start making freezer dinners, and try my hardest to fit them all in our tiny freezer.

Pregnancy so far has been awesome. I'm slowly starting to get more uncomfortable. I can barely bend over anymore, and Zac has to help me up from laying down. I haven't had acid reflux in a while (yay!), but those cramps are coming back lately. At least you don't see me waddling yet! 

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back in march.

Back in March, just a week or two after we found out I was pregnant, Zac and I took a walk, got a frosty from Wendy's for me, and an ice cream cone from Arctic Circle for him, and sat down in the grass facing State Street and just talked. It had been cold all month, but that afternoon, the sun was out and it was unusually warm! And we had a secret that no one else knew at that point: we were going to have a baby! We were going to be parents! "Just eight more months until this baby comes, Zac!" 

That day was so good, and I wanted to take a picture of our excitement on that day. The lighting gave us this little gem, and we liked it, so we didn't try for another one.

"Just eight more months." I remember saying that back in March. And now there's just two and a half months, and my belly is huge, and that baby that didn't even tip the scales back then moves and kicks all day long now. I cannot wait to see its little face, and say, "It's you! I know you, and you're here!"

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over the weekend...

Over the weekend, Zac and I...

...ate pizza at Nicolitalia's (the first time since last October!).

...got ready for Zac to start school this week, and bought a few supplies.

...felt lots of little love kicks from the baby.

...made pumpkin pancakes and mushroom soup (I'm so ready for Fall).

...played Farkle on the riverbank.

...watched What to Except When You're Expecting at home instead of going to the theater.

...shaved off Zac's beard (well, he shaved it while I watched in horror).

...listened to lots of records.

Happy Monday!

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29 weeks.

At 29 weeks, I am busting out of this chambray top, obviously. I keep telling Zac, "I don't know how my belly is going to get any bigger--it's already sooo big!" I'm going to laugh when I'm full term. I'll be huge. I can't believe there are only 11 weeks left until this little babe comes.

It seems like since I entered the third trimester, all the uncomfortable symptoms just hit me. I get acid reflux almost everyday, and I have to stop and catch my breath several times a day! And I just want to sit at home and eat cake and cookies, dang it! I'm trying to go without sweets until the first day of Fall, because I have been eating a lot of those. We'll see how it goes, because this baby is all about sweets and desserts. I'm still deciding if root beer falls into that category... This baby likes the root beer, too.

I've been starting to do prenatal yoga a few times a week (and I even lose my breath with that!), and it's wonderful. At work, I walk around the back parking lot a couple times a day. That's the only exercising I do. I know. Don't worry about it.

This baby has the strongest kicks, and loves to slide its arms and legs across my belly. It's starting to feel weird, but I still love it! The baby loves to kick things I set on my belly, like books and my water bottle, and I'm starting to have to sit further and further away from my desk at work. I feel like with how small I felt in the beginning, this bump is making up for it now.

The baby is just more than 15 inches long and somewhere in between 2 1/2 and 3 pounds. And it keeps its eyes open when it's awake! I find that adorable, little baby eyes. No stretch marks yet, no middle-of-the-night bathroom breaks, and no peeing of the pants. Let's see if I can make it the whole pregnancy without peeing my pants. That would be awesome.

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short hair, don't care!

Over the weekend I chopped a good foot of my hair off. And now, the long, long hair I've had since I was a 4- or 5-year old girl is gone. And I'm still trying to decide if I like it, trying out different ways of styling it (I think I've convinced myself that a smaller curling iron will fix my problems). It's different, but I think it's growing on me (pun certainly intended). 

I've been wanting to cut my hair to my shoulders probably since I started college. That was five years ago! And now I can say I did it! And that was a very bold and brave move for me, because I am highly emotionally attached to my hair. It's nice to have something different for a change. And since I can't color my hair (years ago, I vowed to never dye my hair, ever), a haircut was a good change.

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jason's birthday party.

Last night we drove down to Provo for Jason's birthday party! He's twenty-five now, just like Zac! Abby put so much work into it, like making paper lanterns, digging a fire pit, hanging strings of lights, putting together a game of jeopardy that revolved around Jason's life, baking a chocolate cake from scratch, and some dip, too! This girl is wonder woman! We met some new friends, too, named Roselia, Nelson, Becca, and baby Daphne (isn't she the sweetest?).

We started the night with some jeopardy, and Zac and I took second place! I was so impressed with that idea for a birthday, and I might have to steal it one day. :) We took pictures and ate chocolate cake (two slices for me) and 7-layer dip, and listened to music. We even played Mario Kart on the projector, and ended the night with some good ol' group karaoke. It was a blast! Definitely one of the better parties I've been to. I love these people.

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28 weeks.

I'm officially in the third trimester! I've made it two thirds of the way, and that kind of blows my mind. This week I discovered my new favorite treat: vanilla bean ice cream topped with little sprinkles of cinnamon and nutmeg. I had told Zac that someone should make a cinnamon flavored ice cream, and then one day I decided to make my own, and it did not disappoint. And the fact that I've been craving cinnamon helped, too.

This little baby that I've fallen completely in love with has started kicking its papa when I hug him goodbye in the mornings. I think it's the highlight of Zac's day. I can't believe they're so strong that you can feel them so well from the outside--I remember when I was the only one who could feel those little kicks. The baby is just shy of 2 1/2 pounds, and almost 15 inches long! And I read that if it was born right now, it would have an 85% chance of surviving. Dear Baby Swenson, please stay inside for 12 more weeks, thanks.

So far I've gained about 23 pounds, and sometimes I feel like a busted can of biscuits, but not always, so I'm grateful. The biggest annoyance this week has been the fact that I'm out of breath about half of the time, but especially when I lie down at night. In addition to that, I've had the baby sit on a few nerves that shoots pain down my left thigh, and the bottoms of my feet will get charlie horses sometimes. I've never heard of that one. But so far, I haven't peed my pants (!!!), although I swear I was going to a few days ago when the baby was kicking my full bladder. I was talking to some friends last night, and they were shocked to know that I don't have to wake up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom, nor do I go an unusual amount throughout the day. Counting my blessings, here.

So far I've had no swelling (I'm even still able to wear my wedding ring!), no heartburn, and no stretch marks, although my poor belly is being stretched more than I ever imagined it could be. It makes me laugh to think that it's going to get so much bigger. I'm still craving root beer and popcorn (I think my subconscious just wants to go see a movie...), as well as cinnamon, desserts, and carbs. I still can't get into produce, unless it's sweet, like strawberries. Raw onions and ranch still make me sick to my stomach. I can't wait until that goes away. I can handle any smell though, even cleaning products!

I'm starting to think of outfits the baby can wear on Thanksgiving and Christmas, and I'm having fun. I ordered a onesie for Thanksgiving, and I'm really tempted to buy this to go with it. I think I have to now. And I've already got some ideas up my sleeve for Christmas outfits. I'm having so much fun with this. :)

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last night.

Last night, my husband walked through the door with a bouquet of carnations in his hands for me. It was such a lovely surprise, and put a huge smile right on my face. That man...

We made dinner to take to JoJo and Eli, and got to hold our new nephew, Kaleb. He's tiny, and it was cute to see Zac with a baby in his arms. 

Then we headed over to Sadee's to say goodbye. They left for Colorado this morning. That's where they'll call home now. We helped clean up, and got some food out of the deal. We love us some food.

Then we came home, and I tried really hard to not eat the entire bag of muddy buddies, so I cut up some bright red strawberries for myself, and went to bed with that good man who brought me flowers a few hours earlier.

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malawi's and the new record store up the street.

Last Wednesday night, we had a double date planned with our best friends, Wes and Bernz. And how can you not have a date planned when they live just a few blocks away?! (We love it.) So we picked them up and drove to Malawi's pizza for some dinner. I know. Fire-grilled pizza. We live for it. It was our first time trying it, and it was pretty good (although I like Pizzeria 712 waaay more). Erica's pizza had so many mushrooms on it, and so instead of eating them, she made a smiley face with them (of course). 

After dinner, we headed over to the new record store in town and looked and looked and looked. We were all pretty excited about it, because that's the only one in Orem, and guess who shares our love for vinyl? And it's walking distance from where we live?! That is just A-okay with me. Zac and I got Led Zeppelin and Cat Stevens to add to our ever-growing collection, and broke them open that night and gave them a listen. So good, that music on vinyl. 

After the record store, we went back to their place and looked at Erica's digital media projects and talked about homemade soda and maybe throwing another soda party. 

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salem days.

This morning Zac and I woke up early and drove down to Salem to meet the rest of his family for Salem Days! Salem is a pretty small town, and that makes it nice for us, because we get to watch the parade from the driveway. We ate breakfast together and got to meet Whit's and JT's new puppy, Walter, and he's the cutest!

A few of Zac's aunts and cousins (no uncles came!) and his grandparents met us there for the parade, and we all watched from our chairs in the shade. And there was soooo much candy thrown at us, I was amazed! There was candy all over the driveway at the end, untouched, because everyone already had too much. I wish all parades had that much candy. And we got to see Bouge!!!

After the parade, while we were cleaning up, we found a little snake on one of the blankets, and Lyle caught it and showed everyone. And all I have is one out-of-focus picture of it.

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27 weeks.

We've got exactly one day less than 3 months to go until this baby's due date! I can't believe it's gone be so quickly, but at the same time, I want it to be here now! Zac and I have been talking about what it will be like when I actually give birth, and when the baby is finally here. He asks me if I'm nervous, and I say, "Nope! Just excited!" I have felt absolutely no nervousness about giving birth to this baby. Maybe it'll change when I'm further along, but I don't think so. I think a big part of that is because I've done my research (and a lot of it) about labor and childbirth and hospital procedures and things that could go wrong and things that happen postpartum. I feel like I've done pretty well at educating myself about everything that will and may happen (and I still have lots to read up on before the baby gets here), and I feel prepared. If you do one thing while pregnant, I highly recommend reading anything and everything you can get your hands on that has anything to do with childbirth. 

This week has been so much fun, because I have started to feel kicks and jabs in two places now: on my right side where the baby's feet are, and on my left side where its little bum is. You can feel it stretch its legs, and that will make its backside push up against the other side. And when it does this, its bum will make a big bump on my belly, and we'll poke it, and it'll poke back, and ohmygosh I'm so in love!

I am craving root beer all the time, and carbs too (surprise), and now I'm starting to really want pumpkin-flavored anything (kind of like that one time I was craving pumpkin ice cream back in May and NO ONE had it because, well, it was May). Thankfully Fall is just around the corner, and I'm so excited for it to come! As much as I'm craving root beer and pumpkin, I still have no desire to eat produce. But oddly enough, smoothies sound really good to me, so I'm going to start drinking green smoothies in the morning like I used to.

So far I'm up about 20 pounds (and I still fit in the dress I wore at our engagement pictures! ...but only because I weigh the same now that I did back then), and the baby is just over 2 pounds, and a little more than 14 inches long! How did it get so big?! Lately I've been so out of breath, even with light walking. I'm not sure if the baby is up in my lung space, or if I'm out of shape. Probably a little of both. :) Also, lately I've had a little bit of a sore throat and that stuffy nose I had in my first trimester is coming back. My back, hips, and legs get sore occasionally, and headaches! I had two bloody noses yesterday, too (the last time I got a bloody nose was at 16 weeks, and I got two then, too). But being pregnant is so awesome, and those little kicks alone make everything worth it.

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a friday night with jason & abby.

Last Friday night, we met up with our new friends, Jason and Abby, and a few other people, for some soccer and burgers. Zac and I only watched (you better believe I would've been out there playing if I didn't have a baby bump!) and picked grass and talked while the others played, but we did our share of eating (I ate two burgers, and it was awesome!). 

Later in the evening, we went to the Rooftop Concert and got there in time to see Mindy Gledhill play her music. And ya know what? I wasn't a huge fan of hers before, but her music is actually really pretty. And she's from Provo! I swear, all the good musicians are (like RYAN INNES!!!!! who's actually playing next month's rooftop concert!). 

We had so much fun with these two, laughing all night long and talking about where to get glasses (everyone seems to love the fact that Zac and I have glasses), and what it's going to be like when we have the baby (Abby really wants a baby... I seem to do that to people), and moving three times before we found the perfect spot amidst the crowd at the show. :) We were completely exhausted by the time we got home. I live for nights like these!

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