Hello 3rd Trimester: 28 Weeks & Counting!

"Hello Baby Girl!" I exclaim, whenever I feel her kicking or dancing these days. My beautiful little baby loves to move around in utero - day or night, I can feel her stirring when I get excited, eat a tasty meal, or jump around with Penny, our dog. She is 28 weeks old, and according to my reading, weighs nearly 2 1/2 lbs, measures up to 16 inches (head to toe), can open and close her eyes, and may now be dreaming as she moves through REM cycles of sleep. She's about the size of a large eggplant, and will start to hold onto body fat in the coming weeks, as she develops.

I'm officially in my third trimester of pregnancy! That means I only have 11-12 weeks (roughly three months) remaining until baby girl is full-term. My prayer is that our sweet baby will continue to develop strong and healthy, and greet the world when she is ready. I'm curious to see if she makes it to 40 weeks, or arrives sooner or later than that.

So far, I'm feeling good overall, with my most noticeable pregnancy changes being increased exhaustion and a constantly stuffy nose. I've gained about 15 pounds in the past 6 1/2 months and can expect to put on another pound a week until birth. Average weight gain for pregnancy is about 25-35 lbs, and I'm trying to practice peace in this particular area of my life, as gaining weight has always had such a negative connotation to me. God continues to equip me with grace for this journey and I'm amazed at how much joy I've gained in this season of anticipation. I'm so excited to become a mom!

My appetite has grown steadily in the past few weeks. Ironically, since my belly is growing just as fast, I'm unable to eat as large of meals as I would like. I'm continuing to snack on fruits, veggies, cheese, and crackers (with my newest craving being Mauna Loa brand chocolate-covered macadamia nuts!) Chocolate has worked its way back onto my list of favorite things, after I gave it up almost completely during my first trimester. Something I also learned about myself recently is that I can eat a whole pineapple on my own. It has to be fresh, ripe, and preferably, Hawaii-grown. Baby girl is Hawaiian at heart, I can already tell!

Here are a couple photos of our meals this past week. I've noticed myself craving protein more frequently.

Broccoli, zucchini, onion, and bacon omelet 

Avocado, shredded carrot, and cheddar cheese sandwich  

I'm looking forward to seeing what these next few months will hold for our little family of three (four, if you include Penny.) Thanks for stopping by and for supporting us in this journey toward parenthood!