30 weeks!!

How far along are you – 30 weeks
Total weight gain – 13-14 lbs
Maternity Clothes – all the time. In fact, I need to invest in a few more maternity tops. My cotton non-pregnancy tops are getting too tight and not fitting the right way.
Stretch Marks – I am still stretch mark free!!!
Sleep – This last week was different because we weren’t home and I didn’t have the luxury of my own body pillow or bed. I always get great sleep at my in-laws house however. Our little man likes to wedge himself on the right side of my rib cage at night, which has been making it harder to get comfortable.
Best moment this week – The baby shower that my mom had at her house was wonderful. While we were home, my brother and good friend Kelsey got to feel our little man move. It was so cool to see their reaction to my belly movement.
Miss anything – Lots. Bending over easily to put socks and shoes on, easily getting up off of any couch, seafood and a solid night’s sleep.
Movement – Tons of movement. I have been feeling movement on both sides of my tummy at the same time, which leads me to believe that he is lying across, instead of up and down.
Food Cravings – I am craving sweets more these days. I can’t seem to eat enough ice cream . . . .
Gender – Boy Boy Boy
Labor signs – I am getting used to the Braxton hicks contractions, but they are still there and annoying.
Symptoms – swollen feet, achy back and loss of any energy that I had a few weeks ago.
Belly Button in or out – both. It’s half in and half out. Maybe it’ll just stay in for the rest of the pregnancy!
Wedding ring on or off – On!
Happy or moody – Happy this week. There wasn’t much to be moody about this past week. We were back home spending wonderful time with family.
Looking forward to – These next few weeks. I have my 30-week appointment on the 6th and my cardiology appointment on the 12th, just a few days later.

This last week that we were in Seattle was a wonderful opportunity to spend time with family and friends. My grandmother was staying with my parents while Brad and I were there, so it was wonderful to see her and spend time with her. Brad got to spend some much needed guy time with his very good friend Mitch for two out of the three nights we were at my parents house. My “little sister” Kelsey and I went shopping on Thursday and had a great time having girl time. It was fantastic to catch up on what is going on in her life and be the old Megan and Kelsey again.
My brother was able to join us for dinner on Wednesday night and it was AWESOME to see him for a few hours. This was the first time he has seen me since I’ve gained this amazing pregnant belly, so his first reaction to me with a belly was priceless. He had the chance to feel our little guy move which was pretty cool to see his ear-to-ear smile.
The shower was on Saturday afternoon and it was nice to catch up with all of the ladies who came to shower baby Ireland and I with gifts. I am amazed at the generosity of people and how they blessed us with wonderful gifts. We received two baby monitors, two diaper bags, lots of blankets (one being hand made by my mother) tons of clothes and other baby necessities. My 2nd mother, Judy Brough, got me started on my adventure of making my own baby food by purchasing a food processer, ice cube trays and two recipe books for me. I realize that we still have some time before he is eating some solid food, but it never hurts to be ready. Judy also gave us a hand me down swing and a jogging stroller. We weren’t able to come back to Billings with them, but they will make it to us one way or another. Thank you Judy! My mom also gave us an old sweater that my late grandmother had made for my brother when he was an infant. ☺
After the shower, I drove down to Yelm with Brad’s family to spend the last few days with them. Brad was already down there, as his dad had picked him up earlier on Saturday so he wouldn’t have to be put through the torture of a baby shower. We had a nice dinner and were able to really go through our gifts and see what we were given. Brad was amazed by all of the stuff we got and how generous people are. Sunday we went to church with his family and it was great to see familiar faces. The pastor of this church was the man who married Brad and I and is also one of Brad’s father’s very good friends. I guess the Ireland family and the Blake family are in a race to see how many grandchildren they can rack up! Pastor Russ made an announcement at church to make sure everyone knew Brad and I were home and this makes grandbaby number 5 for the Irelands and the Blake’s only have 4, so his kiddo’s needed to hurry up on the next one! Healthy Competition right?

We left early on Monday morning to have a quick breakfast with Brad’s oldest brother and his family before we left for our flight home back to Bozeman. I had a feeling this trip would come and go with a blink of an eye, but it truly did. Arriving early Wednesday morning and leaving Monday was faster than we both wanted and left us feeling more homesick than before. It’s nice to have family around to spoil you and support you in the choices you make. It’s also very nice to come back to the house we have made a home and sleep in our own bed with our puppy dog.
All in all it was a fantastic trip and we made some pretty great memories. There are so many more to come once our little man is here!

29 weeks

How far along are you – 29 weeks
Total weight gain – 13 pounds
Maternity Clothes – all the time
Stretch Marks – Nothing ☺
Sleep – it comes and goes but my body pillow is a life saver
Best moment this week – There have been quite a few actually. I got to watch Brad’s reaction to feeling our little man move. We were on the plane, landing in Seattle and little man was moving all around. Brad has felt him move before, but he was being super active on the way down to land. It’s also been pretty amazing showing off my belly to my friends. My good friend Kelsey has been able to feel him kick and her reaction was priceless. A funny moment was when I asked my brother “ Can you feel hard my uterus is?” and his reaction to it. He had his hand on my belly waiting for him to move and I had a contraction instead. It was pretty funny at the moment and we will laugh about it for a long time to come.
Miss anything – the ability to put shoes on with ease, fresh fish, many cups of coffee and a good solid nights sleep.
Movement – TONS. He flips around and kicks, but seems to favor my right side.
Food Cravings – I’m back to my regular diet.
Anything make you queasy or sick – I’ve been very lucky with not being sick.
Gender – Boy all the way.
Labor signs – Braxton Hicks.
Symptoms – swollen feet,
Belly Button in or out – It’s almost out, but holding strong.
Wedding ring on or off – On.
Happy or moody – Moody. I was stressed out about packing and getting ready for our Seattle trip.
Looking forward to – My Seattle baby shower!! I am so lucky to have a mother who is willing to throw a shower for me. ☺ It will be wonderful to see friends and family and celebrate our new addition.


Brad and I have had quite the adventure already on our trip to Seattle. We weren’t able to fly stand-by out of Billings because of an over sold flight, so instead we drove to Bozeman, MT to fly to Seattle. The flight was scheduled to leave at 6:15 am on Wednesday morning and arrive in Seattle around 7:30. It’s a two-hour drive to Bozeman from Billings and you are supposed to arrive two hours early, correct? So that would put us in Bozeman at 4:15. Instead of leaving billings at 2am and hoping we get to the airport on time, we just decided to leave right from billings as soon as I got off work at midnight to drive the two hours and just be early. We got on our Bozeman flight just fine with 24 open seats and attempted to sleep for the quick flight to Seattle and arrived around 7am. Brad and I visited with my grandma and mom for about an hour and then took a 3-hour nap to attempt to get on with our day. Since we rested, our visit has been wonderful. Brad got to hang out with his buddy Mitchell last night and I went to bed early.
This morning we went down to my neighbor Judy’s house and spent the morning visiting with her. When I went out and about with my good friend Kelsey, Brad ran errands with my mother and grandmother. I found a dress to wear for my shower, which is exciting. ☺ Kelsey also volunteered to do our whiteboard this week and we took some pictures. It’s so wonderful to be home with family! The next few days will be a whirlwind of visiting people, pictures and hanging out.

28 weeks! Happy Valentines Day!

How far along are you – 28 weeks
Total weight gain – 13 lbs
Maternity Clothes – all the time
Stretch Marks – Still nothing, perhaps I’m lucky.
Sleep – It comes and goes. I sleep pretty well once I’m in a comfortable position.
Best moment this week – seeing Brad come home from work today to his favorite holiday treat! I made him almond bark dipped pretzels and they put a HUGE smile on his face. Happy Valentines Day hunny! Our very good friends the Diaz’s also announced that they were expecting this week!! She is about 11 weeks along and doing great! We are so excited for them! Congrats you guys!!
Miss anything – the ease of putting socks and shoes on, a glass of wine and fish. My energy level has also decreased again, so I find myself on the couch more often these days and being exhausted from doing nothing.
Movement – TONS of movement. Our little guy has been moving around quite a bit these days.
Food Cravings – I still have quite the sweet tooth.
Anything make you queasy or sick – no
Gender – Boy
Labor signs – Braxton Hicks contractions.
Symptoms – I have had tightness of my abdomen and a stuffy nose. Also, when I lay on my right side for too long at night I get a tingling sensation down the right side and have to move. I feel bad for poor Brad for my constant movement at night.
Belly Button in or out –Still in.
Wedding ring on or off – On. However, when I gave it to the jeweler the other day to clean it was hard to take off.
Happy or moody – I was a little bit of both this week.
Looking forward to – My 29 week appointment on Monday morning and leaving for Seattle on Wednesday morning.

I can’t speak for Brad, but I am overly excited to go back to Seattle for a few days. It will be nice to spend time with family and get a pampered. My grandmother will be staying with my parents while Brad and I are there, so it will be nice to spend time with her as well. It might prove to be a little difficult to not over do the seafood consumption, so hopefully I can keep it to a minimum. I suppose that’s a perk to living in a land lock state. No fresh yummy seafood!
We will be spending 3 nights with my folks up north and then our last two nights down in Yelm with Brad’s parents and oldest brother and his family. Brad’s parents made a two-week trip to Nepal and then spent some time in Ireland, so it will be nice to hear about their trip. Also, Brad’s oldest brother Greg and his family did a mission trip down to Mexico so I’m eager to hear all about their trip as well.

27 weeks - 3rd Trimester

How far along are you – 27 weeks – Welcome to the 3rd Trimester!
Total weight gain – still sticking with 12-13 pounds
Maternity Clothes – All the time
Stretch Marks – Nothing
Sleep – I’ve had more good nights of sleep than bad ones this week.
Best moment this week – Feeling our little guy move around.
Miss anything – half pots of coffee, tuna fish sandwiches more than once a week and having a glass of wine. I also miss being able to bend over comfortably to put socks and shoes on.
Movement – TONS!
Food Cravings – No cravings this week.
Anything make you queasy or sick – I’m still very fortunate to not have anything make me sick.
Gender – BOY
Labor signs – I am getting used to the Braxton Hicks contractions, but they are still annoying.
Symptoms – My nose isn’t as stuffy this week but my feet are starting to hurt more.
Belly Button in or out – In
Wedding ring on or off – On
Happy or moody – It’s a toss up this week. I’ve had a few great days and a few moody days.
Looking forward to – My next doctors appointment on the 18th and our trip back home for my first baby shower!

As I mentioned last week, we have graduated to appointments every two weeks. This week we also entered the 3rd Trimester!! In just about 12 weeks, we get to meet our little man and hold him in our arms! Even though I didn’t know I was pregnant for most of my 1st Trimester, I have had a pretty awesome pregnancy. Yes, I’ve had the usual pregnancy complaints of body parts hurting and having difficulty doing certain things, but I’ve been pretty fortunate. I haven’t gained a ton of weight, my appetite returned and I’ve felt pretty good. On the negative side, I have had a harder time sleeping and finding a comfortable position at night, I’ve become far more moody and emotional and my absentmindess is driving me up the wall.

Brad and I had an uneventful week this week. As our trip to Seattle draws near, I am getting excited to see friends and family. Our friends here in Billings have had the opportunity to watch me grow on a daily basis, but last time our friends saw me in Seattle I had my pre-pregnancy body. I’m excited to see everyone’s reaction to my growing belly. It’ll be nice to spend time with my parents and grandmother and to spend some quality time with Brads parents and oldest brother and his family for a few days.

26 weeks

How far along are you – 26 weeks
Total weight gain – 13 pounds
Maternity Clothes – All the time
Stretch Marks – My belly is still stretch mark free. ☺
Sleep – It seems I get into a comfortable position and then our little man decides it’s time to party in my uterus and I have to find another!
Best moment this week – Finding out I don’t have gestational diabetes!
Miss anything – the regular tuna fish sandwiches and wine, but I also miss being somewhat normal and not have crazy mood swings.
Movement – TONS! He stays up late and moves around and is up early in the morning to make sure I remember he is there.
Food Cravings – sweet and sour candy.
Anything make you queasy or sick – Nothing.
Gender– Boy
Labor signs – Braxton Hicks contractions are becoming my new best friend.
Symptoms – My feet are starting to hurt more often at work and have become swollen.
Belly Button in or out – Somehow it’s still in but I have a feeling that in the next few weeks it’ll pop right out!
Wedding ring on or off – They are on but on the tight side some days.
Happy or moody – I think I was more moody this week. I have some cranky co-workers that don’t help with my mood swings, but I can always come home and depend on Brad to help me.
Looking forward to – We are looking forward to leaving for Seattle on the 20th of February! It’ll be nice to spend time with family and friends from home.

I had my 25-week appointment on Wednesday, which was also my glucose-testing day. The orange drink that they gave me was pretty gnarly so I drank it as fast as I could so it would just be over with. My doctor came in and measured me and answered my questions I had this week. I got to hear the heart beat again, which is always amazing and it’s a strong 155!! She also graduated me to appointments every two weeks instead of once a month! For those of you who know how great I am with needles, I managed to make it through a blood draw all by myself. My hands got a little clammy, but I made it!