Two weeks to go!! Yikes!

Today I am 37 weeks 4 days pregnant! Tomorrow will be 2 weeks until my schedule c-section. I can't believe time has flown by!! Believe me... I'm ready to not be pregnant anymore...see...def. getting large.

My dr. appointment this past Tuesday went well... nothing to report. We are both doing well and no progress so far. As time is flying by it is somewhat unnerving to think about the c-section, the recovery, transitioning from one to two, and then starting all over with infant care and nursing. I'm hoping it all comes rushing back to me to ease my nervousness. But we are so excited to meet our new addition and introduce him to Ethan :) Ethan has already been pretty cute with my belly. Kissing and hugging my belly and saying: "Baby brother come out and play trucks Mommy?", "Baby brother still in there?", "He kick Mommy?"... it's very cute and I'll miss it a little bit. Especially knowing that down the road they won't always be that cute! LOL.

We are curious to see if he grasps that he came out and he's no longer in my belly... lol. We have started hearing some grumbling because we haven't shared our name ideas. LOL. Patience everyone! You will find out soon enough! :) We are so excited to see what he's going to look like, to hold him and start our next phase as parents :) My last Dr. appointment is Monday, October 7th...then from there it's my 8:30am c-section on he 18th :) Unless little guy decides to surprise us sooner...

Not so fun symptom...

I don't like to complain because I know that I'm extremely blessed compared to some other pregnancies I've heard about OR of friends I know. So I hope this doesn't come across the wrong way but I just need to vent for a second...I never had to deal with this when I was pregnant with Ethan. I've had a reoccurring phenomenon that I've been dealing with for several months now... is HORRIBLE!! Starting at about 4 months along. I started battling some random bouts of SPD (Symphysis Pubis Dysfunction)which is basically where your pubic bone (yes down there) is pulling apart and shifting due to 'loose cartilage' from pregnancy hormones and just from preparing for birth. This causes pain while walking, rolling over in bed, most things... It was not pleasant when it showed up but it would only last a few hours and go away for the most part... so I just dealt with it as it comes. However, over the last couple of weeks the frequency of that has increased but a new symptom "lighening" has combined with it. "Lighening" basically occurs just from the baby dropping from what I've read. I suppose that was the perk of Ethan being breech all the way up until the end...he never dropped. Now that did come with its own issues (not being able to breath...sore ribs and diaphragm, etc.) but I feel as if this is worse. So right now I can't sit for long periods of time without major pain. This wouldn't be an issue if I was at home all the time because I'm not usually sitting down for long periods, I"m always doing something with small breaks here and there. But at work... where I sit 90% of the time... this is posing a problem. So after sitting for a time this will happen so I get up to relieve the pain... and then the SPD kicks in... So basically I can't sit, stand, walk, roll over in bed... yep... fun stuff. Only one month to go! I can do this!! :) And it's 150% worth it... I know... I don't like complaining... just venting... sigh... back to work.

35 weeks 3 days

One month from today we're having our second little one :) yay!

34 weeks... moving right along

We are 34 weeks pregnant! I can't believe it's less than 6 weeks from now we will be a family of 4! :) Very excited to meet our new addition... especially since he's clearly running out of room... and so are my organs. ;) Here's a belly pic. I have an appointment on Wednesday of this week. Our last appointment went well and everything was on track and both of us are very healthy! :)

Ethan is very cute talking about "baby brother". He kisses my belly and tells him goodnight... he likes to "smoosh" him by pressing on my belly which I usually put the kabosh on pretty quick before it gets out of hand lol. The other day he said "Mommy. Baby brother come out! I have a truck for him." It melted my heart. I know Ethan will be a great big brother :) I am so blessed :)

30 Weeks!

30 week belly pic! I haven't been very good at keeping up with these... sorry. I can't believe we're in the third trimester already! Crazy! 10 weeks to go!

20 Weeks! Half way there...

As of Monday I am officially half way through pregnancy!  Yay 20 weeks!

We spent the week before Memorial Weekend up north in Boyne Falls, MI ... it was so nice to relax and spend time together as a family.  We loved it. 

Yesterday we had our anatomy ultrasound.  Baby wasn't very cooperative and was face down the whole time but from what they saw they say baby is healthy! :) Praise the Lord!  I have to go back in 2 weeks for a another ultrasound with the hopes that this time baby will be in a better position. 

I'm starting to get the nesting bug... I really want to start getting the nursery and baby gear ready. 

This week we have family coming into town for my cousin Jonathan's graduation.  We're very excited to see everyone!

18 Weeks today

18 Weeks today.  Baby Ackerman #2 is about the size of a sweet potato now.  I can definitely feel the little one kicking and flipping around in there.  :) I'm also showing now, big time. I feel like I should be telling people I'm about 24 weeks along but oh well.  They say you show more with  your second, well,  "they" were right!

I have some energy back now.  Not as much as I had when I wasn't pregnant but it's better than it was in the 1st trimester.  However, it seems the pelvic/groin/pubic bone pain is here to stay.  I'm going to bring it up again to the doctor at my next appointment; but it seems to be normal.  Goodness it's horrible... and combining that with my crunchy knee... I feel somewhat handicapped and waddly already.  Sigh.

Our anatomy ultrasound is on June 4th and my next dr. appointment is on June 6th.  Looking forward to seeing the little one some more :)

This Friday we're leaving for Boyne Falls (Up north) for a week.  We are so excited! Dave and I definitely need a break from work and everything else.  It will be so nice to just relax and spend time as a family.  Missy and Deron will be heading up on Sunday afternoon to join us for the rest of the week in our adjoining 1 bedroom unit.  The weather will be in the high 60s for the majority of the week.  Not quite as warm as I was hoping (we wanted to get some pool time in) but maybe it will feel warmer than it's projected to be. 

16.5 Weeks Pregnant

Here's a picture of the belly :) sorry for the poor quality.

14 Weeks

Had my doctor's appointment this morning.  All is going well. Little one's heartbeat was right around 140-150 so it has come down a little bit since my first appointment on March 29th (it was at 160 then). 

For the most part most of my symptoms are gone... I'm still somewhat tired but not nearly has bad as it was earlier. During Oliver rehearsals I was dealing with some pubic bone pain which has since subsided for the most party... probably just overdoing it, etc.

I also woke up a few mornings ago with HORRIBLE pain in my ankle that then turned into swelling (which still hasn't gone away yet though the pain has subsided for the most part).  So I talked to my doctors and they informed me that it could be a blood clot and that I should go to the emergency room.  Very annoying... especially considering i'm 80% sure it's a tendon issue from my previous ankle surgery.  So I went... spent 6 hours of my life in the ER to find out that I didn't have a blood clot... which I'm happy about.. except I could have spent that time at home.  So ankle is still swollen...doesn't really hurt anymore... who knows what's going on.

While at the ER however I did see a couple little babies and that made me excited about this little one on the way :)  Yay!

Second little Ackerman is on that way...

(this portion was written on March 11th, 2013)
I'm back...and 8 weeks pregnant again! We're thrilled and very much looking forward to October.  I think it'll be a great month to have a baby.  It's my favorite time of year :)

Well, this time around is MUCH different than my pregnancy with Ethan.  I pretty much have every symptom I can think of: All the time sickness (morning my foot!), bloat (it seems like I'm already showing...so wrong), heartburn, headaches, EPIC fatigue, etc. etc. etc. The symtoms have been a constant reminder that I'm pregnant, and maybe that's what I need with how busy I am? However, being constantly ill and tired makes it hard to be excited about being pregnant.  I'm praying that once this 1st trimester is over that I will be back to normal.

Rant time...It's impossible for me to be showing at 8 weeks considering the baby is the size of a raspberry right now.  However, because of how bloated I am, I am no longer able to button any of my work pants or jeans. It's a real self-esteem boost...not.  We're not really telling too many people until we have our first doctor's appointment on the 29th of March (just so that we can make sure everything is okay)... but the wardrobe has changed significantly and I'm pretty sure some people are going to catch on if they haven't already... oh well.  I'm going to miss my wardrobe... my maternity wardrobe is not exciting... sigh. 

I don't want it to seem like I'm constantly complaining... I am so happy and thankful... I'm just irritable and uncomfortable... it will pass.  If anything I suppose I was due...my pregnancy with Ethan was a breeze (minus the whole getting majorly fat part haha).

On March 29th I had my first prenatal appointment.  All is well. :)  I saw the little him/her on ultrasound and the heartrate was right at 160 (same as Ethan's first ultrasound).  Our next appointment is April 25th.

Today (April 15th) I am 13 weeks along. The baby is about the size of a peach :)  The morning sickness has subsided for the most part and heartburn has taken over.  I'm still feeling pretty tired but I think that has to do with our rehearsal schedule for Oliver.  We open this weekend so once we close I think it'll get much better. 

I'm still undecided if I want to find out the sex.  We loved the anticipation and surpise with Ethan...but at the same time I'm a little more impatient and want to know... especially if it's a girl :)  We'll see.  I have a month to decide. 

I pulled out my pregnancy journal from Ethan's baby box and read this morning that I'm officially 10 lbs lighter right now than I was at 13 weeks with Ethan... I'm pretty pumped about that! :) 

39 weeks... and tomorrow we're parents...

I'm 39 weeks today... and delivering our first child tomorrow morning at 10:30am. Whoa! Can it be true... we've finally reached this point in the pregnancy?? I'll be honest, we've prepped and planned and got all the necessary cute baby stuff ... but I don't think I've actually thought about the 'big day' until the last week or so. It's surreal...that's the only way I can describe what I'm feeling. It's almost like I'm going to wake up and all this was a dream or something... lol... stupid sounding I know.

As we travel through our 'last day alone together', Dave and I keep looking at each other saying things like, "Last day for sleeping in for a while...", " Last time we'll be doing this alone...", "Next time we'll have a baby in tow..." Though it is weird to think that starting tomorrow we'll have a little one with us, we're so excited!!

This morning Dave and I got up when we wanted (last day to sleep in, check) and then took the boys to the groomers (make sure we're at least productive today, check). After we dropped them off we headed out to Birmingham and went out to breakfast at The Original House of Pancakes... YUM! (last day to go out to eat without lugging around a caravan full of stuff, check) It was funny... we actually ran into one of my old co-workers who obviously had no clue we were pregnant ha her face was priceless... we then were sat next to a couple who is also schedule for a c-section tomorrow morning at Royal Oak Beaumont just an hour after us... crazy. So we chatted and joked for a bit about how this was our 'last day' without children, etc. So that was fun to see someone else, complete strangers, going through exactly what we're going through...

After breakfast we went and picked the boys up and headed back home. Dave then went and got a hair cut... and now we're just chillin'. We plan on relaxing, going out to a nice dinner together (the Melting Pot...yum!), and then heading home to start last min. prep. for tomorrow.

It's so amazing and bewildering to me that this time tomorrow we're going to be parents. I'm so excited! I'm not sure that it's officially hit me yet though. Maybe once I'm actually laying in the operating room it'll hit, or maybe once we hear the first baby cry, or maybe when we're alone bonding in the recover room... who knows. But I do know that I'm so thankful and blessed to know that the Lord has allowed this to happen in our lives. We joked with our breakfast companions today about how the hospital is just going to let us go home with a child in a few days even though they know nothing about us. And it's funny/maybe not so funny to think about it that way... especially when you see some people with kids.. yikes. But Dave and I know that God has chosen us and has chosen our path. He meant us for each other and he formed our baby in my belly for us specifically... and he's known about this since the beginning of time. He knows every hair on its little head and it's life path already. That's so amazing to me! Amazing to know that Dave and I were selected to be this little one's parents... wow...

So anyway... we're excited... we're enjoying our 'last day of freedom' lol... and we look forward to this new journey. Just maybe not the first few weeks of it LOL... ;)

AAAAAND... tomorrow is Dave's birthday too!!! Happy 30th Honey!!! I love you so much!!

Oh yeah... and below is my last belly pic... sorry for the delay lol

One week and counting...

One week from now we'll be parents... That is assuming nothing unexpected happens like the baby deciding to flip or my water breaking.

I'm not going to lie... it's a bit nerve-racking... okay more than just a 'bit'...

1. Becoming parents is a HUGE lifestyle change. Dave and I have been together since about January of 2003... that's over 8 years... 8 years of doing things by the seat of our pants... vacationing when we wanted... dropping everything and just going out... spending our extra money on us... basically have the option of being irresponsible if we wanted... That is now changing. Our choices now will effect our child directly. (which I think a lot of people in our society today def. don't realize). Don't get me wrong, we're excited the Lord has blessed us and put us on this new path together. But I'm sure it may be a shock to the system... I will say that pregnancy has slowed us down quite a bit. We've spent the last 9 months prepping and reorganizing ourselves... and slowing down... the bigger I get the less I want to do... which maybe is God's way of making me slow down and think and prepare... if so "Thanks God" :)
So... that is why we're going to devote the majority of our 'last week alone together' to each other and just spend some relaxing quality time. :)

2. We're going to be responsible for another human being... that's scary. Food, water, shelter, discipline, financially, etc., etc., etc...for at least the next 18 years. I know we'll be fine because the Lord will provide us all our needs. I know my instincts will kick in just like all the mothers I know have told me... but that doesn't make me any less nervous to be a mom. Especially since I really don't have a good resource to pull from.

3. I'm scheduled for a c-section. That's a pretty major surgery. I've also gotten several calls from the hospital for prepping purposes (tests I have to go through the day before), I received a laundry list of things I have to do the 48 hours up until the surgery (you'd think I was having my head amputated or something), I've read and heard different testimonies about c-sections and their recovery in detail to... prepare me. And to sum it up... I'm nervous. I wasn't worried about it when we were scheduled... and I'm still not worried. We've/I've been praying about it and I know we have friends praying for us too. And I know the Lord is taking care of us and the baby and I are in his hands. I know that it'll be worth it and that once I hear our baby cry for the first time I won't even think about what I just went through. But the anticipation leading up to that moment is a bit unsettling. So I'm working through that this week...

4. I've never had to take care of a newborn before. Sure I have little brothers and I used to baby-sit a lot. But that doesn't count. Will it be a good baby that sleeps right away? Will I have problems breastfeeding... in that area I have NO clue what to expect or do... I think because I'm such a planner and A-type person... the fact the next month is pretty much an unknown is what freaks me out.

5. I'm SOOOO uncomfortable right now... enough said...

So all in all... We're excited and feel so humbled and blessed that the Lord has put us on this life path together... but I just have some prayer requests and some anxiety I'm just going to have to work through this week.

So yeah... 38 weeks and 1 day today... I have my last doctor's appointment on Tuesday and then my last day of work is Wednesday. Thursday I have to go in to the hospital and get some blood work done ... and then Friday morning (after completing my very specific instructions) we head to the hospital and have a baby...

p.s. I'm going to try to remember to post a belly pic tonight... I hope I don't forget lol (that's also happening A LOT more these days... I think the longer I'm pregnant the less I'm able to use my brain... so annoying).

Hospital Tour and 36-37 Week update

On July 25th we had our tour at the hospital (Troy Beaumont) where we'll be delivering. I must say that it was quite impressive. I think it was a milestone for me because I realized it was actually happening. Not that my growing belly wasn't obvious enough, I know, but somehow seeing all the rooms and the instruments and the moms with their new babies made it very real to me. The maternity ward is VERY nice, the nurses that we met seemed very pleasant and they were very informative. They also seem to provide a lot more than I anticipated; BONUS!

I hit 36 weeks on July 29th but my Dr. appointment was on July 28th. The Dr. did an ultrasound to confirm what I already knew... that baby Ackerman is still breech. Apparently the little one is quite comfy where he or she is... lol. He then decided not to do the normal 36 week check up stuff (i.e. Strep test, cervix check) and just schedule us for a c-section considering the baby's position and the fact I haven't dropped at all...

So...(drum roll please)... we're officially scheduled for a c-section on August 20th. We're having our baby two weeks from today... wow ... very overwhelming feeling...

I'm now scheduled to be at the doctors every week so basically I feel like I live there. My last appointment was August 4th and because the baby was being evasive I had to be hooked up to a fetal heart monitor for about 30 minutes in order for the nurses to hear the heartbeat ... sinker... But everything is fine and we're still on schedule for the 20th.

I'm officially 37 weeks and 1 day today and my next appointment is August 11th.

I will say that my mobility has diminishing. Waddling is now involuntary. We went shopping at Sams Club and Target last night. Needless to say I was concerned I wasn't going to make it from the parking lot, let alone shop two whole stores to grab some things to last us for the next month. Then I saw the motorized carts. After a moment of saying "no no... I don't need that... how embarassing" I gave in. And, wow, I'm so happy I did! They were a Godsend, truly.

So these days we're just hanging out... trying to not fill up our schedules and just relax and enjoy our time as much as we can before it's consumed by our little one... for the rest of our lives :)

35 Weeks with 35 Days to go...

35 Weeks today...

I will say that this past week has been the most uncomfortable one so far... yikes. I'm hoping it was just a fluke or because I didn't drink enough water or something but I have a feeling it's just par for the course these days. I think it has to do with the baby being breach... The baby continues to grow like he or she is supposed to each week but rather than expanding down into my hips and dropping... the expansion is up into my diaphram/rib cage/lungs which means I have a very hard time breathing all the time.

On a fun side note, we get to tour the hospital on Sunday night. One step closer :) Yay!

But I'll be alright... I'm hanging in there and I know things could be much worse and I consider myself very blessed :)

Talk to you next week after my 36 week appointment... oh my gosh I'm considered full term next week... CRAZY! Very excited to meet our little one within the next month :) yay!

34 Weeks!

Baby and I are getting bigger and bigger by the day :) I'm still feeling pretty good...just uncomfortable and hot in this humidity...geeze. Sleeping has also started to get more difficult... the other night I was up literally every hour... so annoying... but last night for the first time in quite a while I only got up once to use the bathroom and slept the rest... yay! So maybe this is the start of a trend!... Oh I hope I hope I hope :)

We had our 34 week Dr. appointment yesterday. Everything is progressing well... but Baby Ackerman is still breach (so it's either stubborn like me or lazy like Dave haha j/k)... so at my next appointment in two weeks we'll decide what we're going to do... there are a couple options to consider... But whatever it is we know that we'll be okay and it's meant to be so we're not nervous. We know we're in good hands with our Lord :)

Here's the belly pic:


I told you we were getting bigger! lol

32 weeks...well almost 33

Again... I'm behind...

Okay so last Thursday I hit the 32 week mark. As of tomorrow (7/7) I'll only have 50 days left until my due date. Crazy!! Wow this pregnancy has flown by... anyway...

Last week I had my 32 week Dr. appointment and everything seems to be in order...EXCEPT... the little Ackerman is still being stubborn on position... (uh oh... gonna be like mommy). So we'll keep you posted on that. But everything else seems to be coming along nicely.

For the most part I feel pretty good at this point. Everything that I'm experiencing is normal. The heat is definitely playing a factor these days... I swell and sweat just walking from my car to the house... so I'm pretty much staying indoors these days. I"m also starting to feel pretty uncomfortable most of the time which I'm assuming is only going to get worse.

We started prepping stuff for the baby's arrival over the last few weeks. Dave put the travel system together... and it's awesome! It's like a Cadillac of strollers :) Very excited! Thank you Nana, Aunt Laurie and Aunt Gerry!! We will continue to gradually put more stuff together as the big day approaches but for now we're enjoying the space while we can before everything is taken over by baby clutter lol. But we also have to think about the dogs and getting them used to all the sounds and what not... so we're thinking the end of July seems to be a good time to start doing all that stuff.

I washed all of the baby's stuff... wow... folding baby clothes is never ending! You can fit so much more into the washer...but then realize later that you'll be folding for a while since everything is so tiny! lol... but it was fun and cute... I'm assuming that will change the more loads that I do LOL.

Next week I have my next Dr. appointment for 34 weeks... so that will be when we post next... including a belly picture...it's definitely getting bigger...

30 Weeks

Wow... 30 weeks... it's crazy how fast this pregnancy has flown by! I'm offically 10 weeks away from my due date and 6 weeks away from being in the 'safe to deliver' zone. As most of you have read I haven't had many complaints or anything over the last 6 months. I'm so blessed to have had a relatively easy pregnancy. But I've officially transferred over into the uncomfortable stage...I can't walk for very long, sit for very long, sleep for very long, breathing has become difficult, etc. etc. etc. But all is normal from what I've gathered from others lol.

Baby is very active now a days especially in the mornings and evenings.

Went to my Dr. appointment this morning and all is well... I'm doing fine (all my aches and pains are normal) and baby is doing well :) There is one slight potential issue but at this point it's too early to say whether it'll cause a change in anything or not...so I'm not going to unnecessarily worry anyone :)

We just keep praying for a healthy rest of the pregnancy, a healthy labor and a healthy mom and baby :)

And I'm very much looking forward to my shower next weekend :) yay!! Can't believe it's almost a week away!

28 Weeks!

I'm officially 28 weeks today... wow. Which also means I'm officially in my third trimester. Wow again! This pregnancy flown by... In three months time our little bundle will be here and we are so excited! yay!

I also had my doctor's appointment yesterday along with my glucose tolerance test. The appointment went well...belly is growing right on track. My weight gain is supposedly normal but still alarming to me LOL... Heart rate is strong and at about 135-140 now. No news is good news on the glucose tolerance test... so we're hoping NOT to hear anything today :) (and the fruit punch stuff they made me drink actually tasted pretty good)

The little one is definitely moving around A LOT more in there... actually it's probably just that I can feel it more since he or she is growing at a rapid pace these days. It's fun and bothersome at the same time. It's fun because Dave and feel it and I enjoy knowing that he or she is doing okay and having 'fun' in there... but bothersome when it wakes me up just as I finally drift off to sleep or when it starts up right as I sit down to relax... Not to mention the kicks are definitely harder than they were before... they're no longer like 'muscle spasms' ... now it really does feel like he or she is practicing their time step in there... LOL..

But all is well and we're so thankful for being blessed with this new addition and a healthy baby and pregnancy so far :)

And I just realized I still haven't posted finalized nursery pictures or a 28 week belly picture... oh geeze... Okay well I'll do that tonight assuming my preggo brain cooperates. :)

Our Babymoon Up North Vacation

We just got home on Sunday from our vacation up north (a/k/a our Babymoon) and we had an absolute BLAST! It was kinda weird thinking about it being Dave and my LAST vacation as a married couple without kids. I wouldn't say it was a 'sad' thing to think about because we're both excited for this next stage of our path... but it was weird to think about.

We just want to thank everyone for coming and for making our vacation that much better. We love our friends and family!

It was truly awesome... why you ask?... 1. We couldn't have asked for better weather. Not one ounce of rain all 10 days... amazing...and not a day below 70. 2. We got to spend time with our awesome friends and even some time with my Dad, Lady and bro Cameron that I rarely get to see. 3. Stayed at an amazing resort in Boyne which was centrally located enough so that we were able to see A LOT of upper Michigan (Boyne City, Petosky, Charlevoix, Harbor Springs, Bay Harbor, Leland, Traverse City, Glen Arbor & Mackinac Island).

We had such an amazing time. We drove up there at about 3pm on the 21st and after stopping for dinner in Gaylord, arrived at our resort condo at about 7pm. We were up there with the Hoods, Burkes, Quires, Kuesters and Valluses. It was so much fun :) We had two 3 bedroom units so we each had our own room and bathroom. So sometimes we hung out and sometimes did our own thing. Most of us were up there by Friday evening and then the Valluses arrived Saturday morning. The Hoods, Valluses & Burkes were in the downstairs unit and then us, Quires and Kuesters were in the upstairs unit. It was so nice seeing the Burkes who live in Colorado (who we haven't seen since our honeymoon cruise 2.5 years ago 'whoa' ).

I'll do my best to map out our trip for you (and for me so that I remember it), but to be honest we didn't really have an agenda and some of the wonderfully relaxing days run together...

Here we go...

Friday the 21st: we starting driving up at about 3pm and arrived at the resort at about 7pm after stopping for dinner with the Hoods and Burkes in Gaylord. We then just hung out and waiting for the others to arrive. The Quires and Kuesters showed up around 9-10pm. We then all ordered pizza from The Lure Bait shop. It was amazing...even though it looked kinda creepy and unsanitary. lol.

Saturday the 22nd: we basically just hung out by the pool (it was about 89 and sunny) and then we all went out to dinner to a place called The Bob-In in Petosky. Where I had a mustard mishap involving poor little Logan...but it was quite funny... haha. And then we all walked by the water and watched the sunset.

Sunday the 23rd: we slept in (which was basically every morning), went over to Boyne City with the Quires to walk around by the water and the town...and then we came back, took a nap... and hung out for the rest of the evening.

Monday the 24th: we slept in (yay), hung out by the pool again, and then we went out to Bay Harbor with the Quires and Kuesters for dinner at Knot Another Bar. Bay Harbor is beautiful! so many amazing homes on the harbor and nice boats. You can buy a dock slip there for just $135,000... yeah... NOT including the boat LOL... And Becky ordered the most amazing Spinach Artichoke dip ever... yum! Thanks for sharing :)

Tuesday the 25th: we got up relatively early and headed over to Mackinac Island for the day. It was about an hour drive out there. We had the most amazing weather (which is why I got horribly sunburned but we still had a good time). We battled the 'plague' of knats or fish flies by the ferry for about an hour (so gross). When we finally got there... We rode bikes around the whole island, saw Arch rock, the Grand Hotel, Fort Mackinac, had lunch at the Gatehouse (yum) and then shopped downtown before heading home and bought hoodies and fudge. We then battled the bugs again on the ferry back along with freezing a little bit (the new hoodies came in handy). And the drove home. Overall I did pretty well... I rode a bike for about 7 miles and walked for probably about 3. For an almost 6 month pregnant woman I think I did pretty awesome. :) So glad we went! We got some pretty pictures that's for sure.

Wednesday the 26th: The Burkes left in the morning and then the Kuesters left in the afternoon :( We just hung out mainly... I was a little bit sore and tired from the day before. We did go out to breakfast with the 'Golf widows' and Quires at the Original Pancake House...and I had some amazing blueberry pancakes yum! We then came back and hung out and then headed to dinner with the Valluses and Hoods at 'The BBQ - the Place to Get BBQ' in Boyne City.

Thursday the 27th: We lost almost the rest of the group on Thursday. The Valluses left in the morning, and the Hoods ended up leaving because Grant was sick :( So we decided we were going to do a date day. We went over to Charlevoix, Petosky and Harbor Springs and walked around the little towns and harbors. Of all of them we loved Harbor Springs the most... so beautiful!! We had lunch there before heading back. We played some shuffleboard with the Quires and hung by the pool for a bit, ordered in pizza and salad from the creepy yummy place and played some euchre. And then started packing for the next morning. :(

Friday the 28th: We had to check out at 10am so we got up, finished packing, checked out and then headed over to the Original Pancake House for breakfast (again) before heading our separate ways. YUM! We then started our trip over to Glen Arbor. We stopped in Elk Rapids and Leland before driving through Traverse City to my dad's condo in Glen Arbor at The Homestead resort. We unpacked the car and then headed out to dinner at the Boon Docks restaurant. We then headed back to find my Dad, Lady and Cameron unpacking and hung out with them for the rest of the evening. We went to bed pretty early because most of us were pooped from a long day of traveling.

Saturday the 29th: My dad took us out to Look-out point for the view (another hiking trip for me) lol but well worth it. We then headed back for lunch at the condo and then went to Oneida Springs to sit on the beach for the rest of the day... it was so nice! We then headed back, showered and then went to a bonfire at my dad's friend's house down the road (one of the most amazing houses ever right on the water... easily worth 3 million or more. We had smores, pasties and looked at the pretty stars.

Sunday the 30th: We got up and packed the car... and then had Montana's 'funeral ceremony' finally. We then headed to the Sleeping Bear Dune driving tour. And then headed over to Ed Love's house (another one of my dad's friends) on Little Glen Lake and watched the boys put their dock in and their dog Scout fetch rocks... so funny. We then started our trek back home at about 3pm, picked up the dogs on the way and made it home at about 7pm.

And then we just hung out on Memorial Day... gathering our thoughts and relaxing as much as we could before reality set back in.

And here I am... back at work... and so thankful and blessed that we were able to take a vacation with amazing friends and family and that we had such amazing weather! We are so truly blessed :)

24 Weeks

Today I'm 24 weeks... time is flying...that's for sure.

I had my monthly appointment yesterday and everything is good. The heartrate is 140s still. So yeah...that's it.. nothing new to report. My next appointment is June 2nd where I will have to do my glucose tolerance test.

On a more exciting note... Dave got to feel the baby kick for the first time last night :) It was very cute... then while we were trying to do our devotional he kept his hand on my belly and the baby was apparently clogging in there... so yay!! Another milestone met :)

Looking forward to our first shower that Dave's mom and sister are throwing on the 15th...