Holy Hugeness!

Well we have come to the night before we will meet baby girl. I am getting induced tomorrow morning! I am not that excited about having to be induced, but I am, on the other hand REALLY REALLY excited to finally have her on the outside! To finally meet her and hold her! To see who she is going to look like.

These last few weeks (I admit) I have been miserable. Thank the Lord Ann and Liz have been here and have been so helpful. I could not have done it without them. I have been more sore, slept less, been more irritable, and lacked motivation. It has been hard waiting for this little girl! Especially since we all thought she would be early. I am NOT a fan of this overdue thing! 

I am a little nervous about tomorrow. It just doesn't make sense that she hasn't come out on her own. I have been dilated for at least 3 weeks, had my membranes stripped twice, gone on LONG (5 miles last week) walks, went to Zumba and had good and painful contractions and even some back labor. By the pictures below... As you will see I am Significantly bigger then my other two pregnancies. Liz and I were laughing as we compared the pics. I just hope she's not 10 lbs! 

                                             41 weeks with baby # 3!                 38 weeks with Ehan 

                                                                                        (a few days before he was born)

           

 40 weeks and 2 days with Bella

I'll keep you all posted as much as I can. Please be praying for a smooth and successful delivery... But most of all a healthy baby girl. Thanks so much!

Pregnancy Update!

                                                         32 Weeks                             37 Weeks

Ann and Liz took a few pictures of us the other night. I truly cannot believe that this baby is not here yet.   I was dilated to a 2 and 25% effaced last Tuesday for my 38 week appointment... and with all the contractions, discomfort and pressure, I thought she would have made an appearance by now! I was hoping she would come while my parents were here visiting... but I guess she had another plan.  Every night, I go to bed thinking... this has to be the night... for some reason I have some good/painful contractions at night. But, then every morning, we wake up and Ben asks me how I am feeling... and I wish I could say something other then 'good'. I have another appointment tomorrow, so we will see what the dr says. 

24 Weeks!

I had my 24 week ob apt today... 

I feel great! I am still teaching my spin classes and feel like I am in (somewhat) good (pregnancy) shape. 

Baby girl loves to move around in the mornings and especially in the evenings when I head to bed. I have a feeling that she will be our biggest baby to date (hopefully not too big though). Bella weighed 7lbs 6 oz and Ethan was 7lbs 8oz, 9 days early). Her kicks and punches are really strong! 

I have enjoyed this pregnancy so far and even after 2 pervious pregnancies, I am still mesmerized at the miracle of growing a baby! 

I like being pregnant... Ben on the other hand, is a little tired of the extra pregnancy gas and hormones. He has said numerous times lately that he is ok if this is our last baby. When he asks me if I am 'done', my answer has been the same each time... "I can't say right now."After Ethan I knew I was not done having children yet. So we will have to see! 

Here I am at 24 weeks. 

20 weeks!

Halfway!

I was 20 week prego on Monday!!! 

I am amazed at how quickly this pregnancy is going by. I am feeling great... I have been able to continue teaching my spin class twice a week. I have never really gone with the 'keep your heart rate under 140 bpm' like most of the pregnancy books tell you to. The doctors here are firm believers in keeping in shape during pregnancy and with every pregnancy have said as long as I exercised before, I can continue with the same sort of exercise. So that is what I do. 

With that said... I have packed on the pounds in this first 20 weeks. So much so, that I am starting to think this baby just might be a boy. 

I feel like I am constantly eating! Eating, munching and snacking literally all day long. But the thing is, is I don't ever feel full!!!! LOL! 

So here is a tally of reasons for a Boy vs Girl up to this point (cont'd from a few weeks ago):

BOY: 

• Gained just as much weight, if not more then with Ethan. At this point (see below) with Belles, I think I had only gained 4 lbs and you could hardly tell I was pregnant. 
• This baby is only on the move sometimes... I remember having a scare with Ethan at 20 weeks, when he didn't move for almost a week straight. And this baby is similar. I will feel him/her move on most days, but sometimes, baby decides he is just too snug to move around and I wont feel him move for a few days in a row. Not the most reassuring thing.

GIRL:

• I remember feeling like my bra strap was always too tight with Bella... and feeling like she was super high in my belly. I feel the same way with this pregnancy. 

We have our ultra sound next week on Thursday and at this point, we are still going to find out the sex of baby. I have a few mixed feelings about it. Bella and Ethan were such wonderful surprises... that it is hard to think about not having that element of surprise during labor and delivery!!! It will be interesting to see if we like finding out the sex, or if we decide we like to wait. 

So stay tuned for the big news nest week sometime! 

20 weeks and 4 days with Baby # 3

20 weeks with Bella (Wow, what a difference!)

Stay tuned for more posts coming soon... as there has been a lot going on these days!

Hello Mommy... Hello Baby!

As you will see this baby has all of a sudden made a very noticeable appearance. I definitely feel pregnant now. My uterus is still and inch below my belly button, but it feels like everything is being pushed upwards in my belly. And I did manage to gain 8 lbs from my last appointment. Yikes. Starting to rethink... baby just might be a boy!!! 

I was going to move all the shoes and tidy up before this picture was taken... and then Ben said, "that is just what happens when you have two kids, leave them!" And he sure is right... Messes are a normal occurrence at the Shaub household!
14 weeks Pregnant

 17 weeks and 2 days

Last Friday night as I was laying in bed, baby decided to start kicking. It was so strong that I could actually feel him/her on the outside of my belly. Up until that point, I had just felt the 'is that the baby' flutters in my belly. I love being able to feel the baby move... and it sure is reassuring! 

Up until this point I haven't had to bust out the maternity clothes, but I did get out my favorite maternity jeans today to wear on our trip. There is nothing more uncomfortable then wearing a pair of jeans that just fit and then having to sit in them for a whole day of traveling. 

For those of you who don't already know... Ben and I are off to Hawaii ALL BY OURSELVES for 8 days! We will miss the kids, but we know they are is great hand with MiMi and Grandma. 

Thanks so much Ann and Mom for staying with Bella and Ethan while we are away. It is much appreciated! We love you! 

SIDE NOTE: Mom and Ann, please don't spoil our kids too much while we are gone... Please remember all the 'rules'... I know your conscience will help you out with that when you are saying "Natalie won't know" to each other... LOL!

 When we get home, we want to keep Grandma detox to a minimum!

Debuting this Fall!

Most of you have probably seen our new side bar and or my Facebook status post about our new addition. CRAZY! I am so thankful that we can trust and know that God is in control and that this baby was planned and that the Lord already knows everything about this little one. What a comforting feeling. This was taken a month ago at our ultrasound... I don't think I was so excited to see a baby and a heartbeat on the screen, as I had quite a bit of bleeding and spotting (before we actually knew we were pregnant) and were even told by the base doctor that he thought we were having a miscarriage. But there he or she was... as big as a raisin with a heartbeat! What a miracle! Only the Creator could come up with something- someone so amazing.

We are now almost 12 weeks along and I feel great. A little tired, but I think that can be attributed to the kids being sick and not sleeping well. Afternoon siestas have been my favorite thing... and I have been taking full advantage when the kids sleep at the same time (which they do on most days).

I have had the weirdest cravings this pregnancy... different then either one before. Here is what I have been craving:

• BMT subs from Subway on Italian herb and cheese. I can down a foot long no problem!
• Apricot jam... can't get enough. I have two pieces of toast with (sugar free) apricot jam every morning. I literally could eat them for every meal.
• Rotisserie chicken. Yummm!
• Orzo pasta salad (anything). One day it was greek orzo salad, and the other day for lunch it was orzo pasta with chicken, spring greens, grapes, craisins, and pecans.
• And my new secret love JOE.... A cup of Joe that is. My mother in law is so proud! Every morning Ben leaves what is left of this coffee (still in the coffee pot) and I have about a half a cup mixed in with my hazelnut cafe mix ( so really I'm cheating... but at least its a step)... and Boy does it get things moving... if you know what I mean.
• Chobani yogurt with walnuts!
• And now that Easter candy is here... Those darn Cadbury mini eggs.

38 weeks!

I must say I am a little surprised this baby hasn't come into the world yet.

But I will also say, that I am feeling really good about things.

At my dr's apt on Monday I was dilated to a 3 and 50% effaced.

I've moved on from the 'get this baby out' faze. I guess knowing that my body is preparing the way it should for a natural delivery, makes me realize he/she will come when their ready... and I'm fine with that.

Here is my 38 week photo:

Ben just took this photo tonight and I have been contracting every 10 minutes. Will baby come tonight... or tomorrow? I say... hopefully!

And check out my new pink slippers.

36 weeks

Here I am at 36 weeks! I feel huge! I am huge... well at least my belly is!

At this point in my pregnancy with Isabella I was still going strong teaching spin... I really never got to the point in that pregnancy where I was like "get this baby out!". I felt great up until the day I went into labor.

With this baby, I must say that I am READY! I haven't been sleeping the greatest, my heartburn is kicking in hard core and I feel huge. And my favorite thing in the world is when people tell me that I'm huge or comment on how big I am. Common people have a little compassion for the ready to pop pregnant women!

Hopefully I wont have to share another 4 weeks of Pregnancy photos with you all. I would be perfectly fine with this baby coming early.

34 Weeks

Just when I thought this baby couldn't get any higher...

He/she is right up in my rib cage. It is a little uncomfortable let me tell you.

My heartburn is getting worse too (but good ol' Tums still does the trick).

Less then 40 days to go... Crazy!

32 Weeks!

32 weeks already! Crazy! Another baby in 2 months... where does the time go?

Getting excited!

I started my dr's appointments every two weeks now. I've slowed down in the weight gain department (Thank Heavens). The baby's heart rate was in the 130's... a little low. A boy perhaps??? My guess is still a girl. Ben thinks baby shaub #2 is a boy. We'll see soon enough who's right!

Baby Shaub #2

This poor baby is going to feel so neglected! I really haven't blogged about him/her since we revealed to everyone that we were pregnant again. I haven't taken the same pregnancy pictures of my growing belly, like I did with isabella. I feel bad about it. No excuses really... I don't know why! Perhaps it is because I have gained more weight this pregnancy (which for some reason has bugged me). But I try to keep reminding myself that gaining weight is what is healthy for this baby and I really can't control it. I am still working out and teaching my spin classes twice a week... so I am still in good shape, just a little bigger then with Belles. Up 25 lbs to be exact! Oh well life goes on!

Anyway, here are some pictures of the pregnancy so far.

Ultrasound @ 6 weeks

As big as a pea

Ultrasound @ 21 weeks

Frontal head shot... you can see the eye socket and the brain (the dark round things on the baby's head) & the heart in the baby's chest (the dark spot)

The feet

profile of the baby's head

20 weeks pregnant

25 weeks pregnant

30 weeks pregnant

On another note... I have been trying to prepare Isabella for this new little addition we will be welcoming in February. She knows the sign for baby and when I ask her about the baby in mommy's tummy she either points to my belly and signs baby or point to her tummy and says baby. So whether she is actually getting he fact that there is a baby in my tummy, she likes the concept. At this point I am not worried or anxious at all about bringing home another little one. I know that she will be just fine adjusting.

I am just as excited about having #2 as I am about the first time. I can't wait to meet this little baby. I have a feeling that it is another girl... but then again I was totally wrong with Belles, so who knows. Ben and I picked out names the other night. So we are ready come february for a boy or a girl!

Surprise!!!

I'll keep it short!

This morning at 5:00 am I woke up with a cramp in my belly. Went to the bathroom, lost my mucus plug, my water broke at 8:00 (as Ben was walking out the door for work, I said, it feels like I just peed my pants, I wonder if my water broke), called the hospital and they want me to come in for observation, my mom casted my BIG belly at 9:00 and now its 9:40 and we are finishing up a few things here and then heading to the hospital to have our baby! Oh yes, and all the while contracting every 10 minutes!

Pain Level: Hurts a little but VERY Tolerable

We would definitely appreciate all of your thoughts and prayers today!!!

Here are a few pics from this morning!

Stay tuned for the BIG news!

40 weeks and 2 days! Taken this morning!

38 weeks!

Well I'll keep this short (because I feel like I am being VERY repetitive in my weekly updates).

Report for 38 weeks: NOTHING!

Still feeling good, finally content with God's timing in the delivery of our baby, napping often and enjoying the last few weeks with just me and Ben.

Here's a pic at 38 weeks!

36 Weeks

36 Weeks...

feeling BIG, but still feeling good.

The baby is still moving around quite a bit, which means he/she probably has more room to grow in there. Don't quite know how I feel about that... But I guess I have NO choice.
I went for my 36 week appointment this past Thursday and the doctor said that NOTHING is happening yet. My cevix is NOT open for business at the moment, no thinning and no contractions! I guess I should get prepared to go a full 40 weeks with this little babe just in case he/she doesn't decide to make an early arrival. I just really hope and pray that the little babe doesn't decide to be stubborn and stay in my belly longer then 40 weeks.

It is getting more exciting though, anticipating the arrival of our baby girl or boy. Ben and I still have the feeling that our baby is a BOY. It is funny how everyone has their own opinion on who is inside of me. Some people are completely convinced that we are having a BOY and the same goes for people convinced we are having a GIRL. It's quite funny. I can't wait to know! Less then 30 days to go... So not too much longer!

34 Weeks and counting!

I went for my 34 weeks appointment this past Thursday... Ben came along this time and was excited to hear the baby's strong heartbeat, which was HIGH again... a BOY in the making! Haha!

The baby is head down already!!! And I can definitely tell, as my hips have decided to all of a sudden spread.

He/she has been really active for the last few weeks, flipping from one side to another... and really pushing out and kicking all over! This obviously means that he/she still has more room in there to grow. Not too excited about more growing, but whatever it takes to have a healthy baby!

32 Weeks and a Baby GROWTH SPURT!

Well... here is my 32 week picture!

And as you can see... I'm on my way to being huge! Haha.
I could just tell that these past two weeks the baby (AND ME) got a lot bigger. I am still having a ton of discomfort in my ribs, which will only get worst as the baby grows in these next few weeks. Ben asked the other day if I was ready to have the baby out of me, and I responded No... But the only thing I am really looking forward to is not having the pain in my rib cage ALL THE TIME!

I had my 32 weeks appointment on Thursday, and this time the baby's heart rate was LOW and the nurse practitioner is convinced our baby is a BOY by the way I am carrying! Not too much longer until we find out! It's so Exciting!

Other then that, everything looked good... my weight gain, belly growth and a strong sounding baby!

30 weeks!

I went in for my 30 week appointment on Thursday. The doc said that everything is going really well. The baby's heart rate was high again this time (a girl perhaps????)... who knows, that's why it's going to be a surprise come June.

The baby is getting much stronger now! He/she is over 3 lbs and 16 inches long. I think the baby has switched postions in my belly. I feel the baby poke far on my right side ( I think its a little foot) and what seems to be a big round thing poke out near the left side on my belly button (the babys back, or bum). It's so fun to feel this little one inside of me!

27 Weeks!

Here is a progression of my growing belly!

I feel huge... But I still have another 13 weeks to go,

so I am only going to get BIGGER.
8 weeks

20 weeks

24 weeks

27 weeks