All The Onesies Max Can Handle!

...Apparently, that's the goal that I'm after. I adore them to pieces. Not only are they so so so so soooooxinfinity cute, but also very practical for a baby that will be born late spring. At what point in your life, aside from infancy, it's it perfectly acceptable to parade around in a onesie? Exactly. My justification is: at least my child will be comfortable at all times. (Well.... most of the time) Behold Max's further additions to his onesie and gown collections.








I was proud that I had thought ahead when purchasing the Ohio State paraphernalia. If Max is born at the end of the May, football season doesn't start until September and at that time, it will be near impossible to find a reasonably priced Ohio State onesie. So what did I do? I (begrudgingly) left the 0-3 month onesies and went with the 6-9 month to ensure that his little body will fill it out. *packs self on back*

What else am I addicted to, you ask? Receiving blankets. Not only are they versatile for the uses of swaddling, a loose blanket, a burp rag, etc the one that I have come in contact with have the most irresistible patterns. As stated prior, I'm a sucker for polka dots. So, what's buying onesies without buying receiving blankets?



Aside from onesies, I have been gauging when to buy big ticket items, I promise. My shower is officially on April 10th, so I am practically sitting on my hands to prevent myself going out and buying anything that I may be gifted from my registry. Though I don't expect anyone to buy the crib and the dresser/changing table, it's on the registry so that I can receive the 20% completion coupon from Target and BRU. I plan to abuse the system and change the "due date" on my registry right after my shower so I can purchase the crib and set up the room as soon as possible. Nothing like waiting until the last minute, right?

Speaking of my shower... I was finally able to decide on what invitation that I wanted to use. It is one that would involved one of my maternity photos, but since I haven't had them taken as of yet, my younger brother was kind enough to offer his photography skills and time to take a few for me solely for the use of the invitation. They have been rush ordered, and will be set out by Saturday. (Woohoo! Something to finally do this weekend!) The company didn't allow me to download the proof, but the picture that I used is:



[sidenote: Just as I was posting this, I realized that when I was putting the information together, I uploaded the black and white picture. Oops. My mom had said I should use the color version. Oops again.]

As of this week, my OB has said that kick counting needs to be done from here until I'm basically in labor. Kick counting is either counting 10 kicks within a four hour period, typically from the time you wake up to lunch, or waiting until when babies are generally most active from 10 pm - 3 am and sit for an hour with minimal distraction. If counting kicks without distraction, there must be 10 kicks within that hour. Ah, splendid. Yet another paranoia to wrap my mind around. She recommended tips to get Max moving if he doesn't want to cooperate, but if I am unable to get him to move, I am to contact my OB immediately. Dear Max, for the sake of your mother not looking like a total lunatic, please cooperate on a daily basis so I'm not calling in hysteria every other day in the middle of the night. Thanks, love. This certainly is an indication that delivery is right around the corner.

On a final update note.... Max's name has been changed. One of Elvis's best friends passed away last week. His funeral was this Friday, and after the funeral, we both felt compelled to pay tribute to Brian. However, I don't like the name Brian, and Brian's middle name, Lee, is a little too common to be paired with a name like Maximus. So rather, Elvis and I have decided to add a second middle name. Elvis has two middle names, so he was able to vouch that it really isn't a big deal. Hardly anywhere would require Max to give his entire name instead of just middle initals, and it's not as if he would say his first, middle and last names if someone were to ask what his name was. That being said, we went with Brian's last name of Bentley to add after Max's original middle name. His name is now:

Maximus Slade Bentley Williams

If that's not an epic name, I don't know what is....

82 days & Counting!

Could my sweater work any harder to stay on my body? I'm only at month 7, and even though at times this feels like an incredible accomplishment, seeing as how I discovered Max was in there when I was about 4-5 weeks along, it felt like it would be eternity before I was into my third trimester. Now? I can't seem to make time slow down. I am anxious to meet him, but the preparation for him is nowhere near close to adequate! Of course I pray for a healthy child, and feel blessed to have fortune of carrying him with me at all times.... I just hope that he stays in there until my due date [at the least!]

Saturday, I saw a kick from the outside. It was a day like any other day. I was slouching (I know, bad posture!) on the couch and he was kicking away. Anytime I attempt to put my hands ontop of my stomach, no matter how gentle, it's as if he senses them there and will stop kicking. I take this as he is playing games even this early on in his life, but needless to say, it frustrates me to no end when I finally give up and rest my hands at my sides, only to start feeling the kicks again! Saturday though, rather than continuously having the war with Max, I looked down at my stomach. I saw him roll across my stomach! It was amazing. I thought that feeling him move for the first time was beyond words, but this was an entirely different level. I've seen him do it since then, and I wonder if that sight will ever get old to me. Actually... scratch that. I would never take those moments for granted.

Grandma's funeral was today. I wasn't necessarily dreading the funeral because she lived a long life. She gained so much wisdom and shared that wisdom as well as her love and compassion for every person from any walk of life that her life is one to celebrated. As the chaplain had said, Grandma didn't want us to worry about her because she's in Heaven. I have no doubt about that, but when I spoke of one of my favorite memories her and I had together [where she was telling me a story from "way back" of pulling a gun out on two men that refused to stop the car to let her and her friend out after a night of dancing... only, the gun was old as dirt, and wasn't working. Grandma was packing heat for the simple fact that anyone she pointed the gun at wouldn't know the difference between a working gun and a non-working gun when push came to shove!] I couldn't help but wish that Max would have been able to meet her. Granted, no one has the ability to live forever here on Earth, and Max wouldn't have remembered meeting her anyway. I'm sure everyone in the family will not have an issue with keeping her memory alive, and I look forward to Elvis being able to tell him stories of what a strong, gracious and caring person Grandma was.

So, through being grateful for the gift that God has given me and the funeral today, it has brought to light my everlasting faith in the circle of life. For the sake of sparing more sappiness, I will only further say that it's a beautiful thing. Though death is painful for those left behind, no matter what age they are when they pass, it's the circle of life. As Grandma would say "Who are we to question God's plan?"
How far along? 23 weeks

Total weight gain: 15 pounds or so. I've been lucky in that it has been mostly all baby and in my stomach instead of my face! Is that superficial?
How big is baby? The size of an eggplant.
Maternity clothes: Maternity jeans are my favorite thing on the planet! I pair them with my pre-pregnancy shirts most of the time, since I feel like maternity shirts make me look like a blob, and I'm constantly fighting with them so that they don't show the panel of the maternity jeans. (Wearing a long tank top underneath is key.)
Stretch marks: Bleh. Yes. I could have done without those, but...such as life.
Sleep: Declining! My body instinctively wakes me up at intervals to turn over when either my body is uncomfortable, or he is. I have the leg cramps, back aches and my arm falls asleep more often than not even though I have the wonder of a Tempurpedic bed! There is no escaping pregnancy symptoms if you are meant to have them, apparently.
Movement: Kicking, punch and rolling on a more set schedule these days with a few surprise jabs throughout the day. He wakes me up in the morning, and says goodnight to me at bed time.
Food cravings: Recently, BREAKFAST FOOD! My eggs over easy, hash browns, bacon, pancakes, breakfast burritos.... And now I'm hungry.
Food aversions: Chicken and meat in general (except my beloved bacon and sausage) Any type of tomato sauce gives me ridiculous heartburn that it's hardly ever worth it to indulge myself.
Belly button: ...Looks strange. Almost like the eye of an Asian individual. I'm still unsure as to whether it will pop since it was so abnormally and freakishly deep before!
Symptoms: Occasional morning sickness, but it only lasts for a few minutes. Definitely running out of juice a lot sooner than anticipated leaving me to not be able to do as much with my days as I would like. HUNGRY.HUNGRY.HUNGRY all the time.
What I'm looking forward to: My next elective 3D/4D ultrasound at 32 weeks! Even at 16 weeks when I first had it done, it surprised me how developed a baby in the womb is at that time. I've been told 32 weeks is the best time to do it, as the baby still has enough room to move about, making the pictures diverse, and also his face is formed and he has some fat on him!
Weekly Wisdom: Recognizing the difference between having to actually pee, and when the baby is just using my bladder as a punching bag, giving me the sensation that I have to pee. I make more trips to attempt to pee than I actually pee! (which is saying a lot, considering I still pee... a lot.)
Weekly joy: Seeing the movement from the outside, and all of the belly rubs/touches from family and friends at Grandma's viewing and funeral yesterday and today.